Black Diamond Dogs: Semper Fi
by Phoenix-cry
Summary: The Black Diamond Dogs, Salen, and Razor are back in a new adventure! Now in charge of the Starfleet Black Ops crew Razor and Salen face new dangers and challenges. This is the sequel to BDDs, a off shoot of ST:Treason.
1. Chapter 1

Black Diamond Dogs: Semper Fi

Chapter One

"Hey, Dingo!"

"Hello, Cobalt."

"Great to have you back! A lot of us didn't think we were going to see you again."

"You had to know I could not stay away."

"Well there's that...but honestly we didn't think you were going to live." Cobalt admitted.

"Oh, right." Salen smiled. "There were more than a few moments when I wasn't sure of that either. I see that cut you got from Captain Kirk's fist left a scar."

"Yes it did." Cobalt beamed proudly.

"Do you know where Razor is? I thought that he'd be here to greet me."

"Don't take it personally. It's July 11th on the Earth calendar."

"July 11th? What does that mean."

"It means it's the one day of the year that no one ever sees Razor."

"Why not?"

"No one knows." Cobalt shrugged. "He's hold up in the observation deck I think, but if I were you I wouldn't go in there."

Cobalt gave Salen a sad smile and left. Salen looked down the hall of the Black Diamond and wondered what his next move should be. He had expected a rowdy reunion with his usually boisterous and outgoing human friend. The Intrepid had dropped him off at an unmanned research station for the Black Diamond to pick him up.

It had not been easy to leave Joanna behind. The wedding had been beautiful and the two week Honeymoon afterward had been nothing short of living in Heaven. Joanna had been tearful at their separation this morning and it broke his heart. He could still smell her scent on his clothing from her embrace. Wandering the halls of the Black Diamond Salen's thoughts returned to the farewell.

"I want to come with you." Joanna whispered.

"I have to go alone."

"I know." Joanna sighed. "The life of a Starfleet Officer's wife isn't an easy one, I learned that from my mother, but being married to a Black Ops runner...I can't help but worry about you."

"Please do not think that I am choosing the Black Diamond over you. I just...I..."

"You belong there." Joanna finished with a sad smile. "I know, and I understand. There probably isn't anywhere else in the galaxy that you truly fit in and I know you'd be miserable here on the Intrepid."

"I could never be truly miserable if I had you around."

"You say that now." Joanna chuckled. "Just wait till you've endured six months of routine research vessel Starfleet work...you'd be crawling up the walls with boredom."

"Maybe." Salen smiled.

"You need to go." Joanna pushed on Salen's chest.

"I love you, Joanna."

"I love you."

Salen leaned in and engaged his new wife in a deep amorous kiss. Joanna returned the kiss and raked her hands into his soft white hair. When he tried to pull away Joanna bit down on his bottom lip to hold him hostage. Salen reached up and brushed her cheek which he found wet with tears. After hesitating for a moment she released him unwillingly.

"I am so sorry, Joanna. I can stay, I can tell the Dogs 'no'."

"No." Joanna shook her head and pushed him away. "You have shore leave in three months, I will see you then. Go stop the bad guys that the rest of us can't touch. I'm proud of you."

Salen gave Joanna one last kiss before leaving her quarters, which they had been sharing on the journey out to the research station. Joanna wanted to say her good byes here rather than the transporter room in fears that she'd be seen crying. As it was only the Captain and Joanna knew that Salen was even on board. He'd made his way alone to the transporter room in the middle of the night and quietly beamed himself down to the station and waited for the Black Diamond.

Now on the Diamond he was a little hurt by the fact that Razor wasn't there to greet him. Cobalt had warned him not to hunt the new Colonel out, but he decided that he was going to anyway. Coming to the closed observation deck doors Salen ran his hand over the contact that made the door chime.

"Piss off!" Razor roared from inside.

"Razor, it is me."

"Salen?"

"That is right."

There was some scrambling and what sounded like some glass breaking. The door opened and Razor appeared with a bright smile on his face. Salen looked him over and noticed that his hair was disheveled. Salen wrinkled his nose at the powerful scent of alcohol.

"Salen!" Razor cried and threw his arms around his friend. "What are you doing here?"

"Reporting for duty."

"Shit, man, I'm sorry, I thought we were picking you up tomorrow."

"Razor, have you been drinking?" Salen asked as he untangled himself from Razor.

"Yeah." Razor admitted. "Come on in, have one with me."

"I think you've had one too many already."

"Don't start lecturing me, Vulcan, you've only been on board a few minutes."

"Ra..."

"You can play the role of my conscious any other day of the year except this one." Razor growled darkly.

Stunned by the agitation in Razor's voice Salen fell into silence. Razor looked at him mournfully and started to say something, but stopped himself. Salen furrowed his brow in confusion as Razor turned away and walked back over to the observation deck window. Putting his broad shoulders against the glass he slid down to the floor and picked up a blue bottle of Romlan Ale and drank straight from it.

Walking over carefully Salen sat down in front of Razor and studied him for a moment. It was clear that Razor had been crying, his eyes were rimmed in red. Salen couldn't remember ever seeing Razor looking so miserable. He took another pull on the blue Ale before offering it to Salen. Feeling that the best way to get Razor to talk was to share the drink with him he accepted.

Razor smiled as Salen took a swig at the powerful alcohol. Salen kept the bottle in hopes of keeping Razor from downing anymore of it. There were the remains of several broken bottles in the corner that looked like they'd been flung there violently. Razor tilted his head back against the window and closed his eyes.

"You want to talk about it?" Salen asked quietly.

"No."

"Okay."

Salen switched his position and leaned his back against the glass as well. Razor clumsily reached for the Ale. Salen spent a moment in a game of keep away, but eventually allowed Razor to have the bottle back. Razor nearly finished off what was left before belching loudly. Salen gave him a disgusted look which made Razor laugh.

"You're a good friend, Salen."

"So are you, which is why this new alcoholism of yours frightens me."

"I'm not an alcoholic. I never drink."

"You're drinking right now."

"Today is different," Razor whispered "today doesn't count."

"Why doesn't today count?"

"It's...it's my brother's birthday today."

Salen wasn't sure what to say, he didn't understand. However the tone in Razor's voice was like he had just told him something of extreme significance. Having given the admission Razor bowed his head and tears silently streaked down his face. Salen had never seen Razor in such a vulnerable state and he didn't know how to deal with it. Salen reached out and put his hand on Razor's shoulder.

"I murdered him." Razor whispered.

"Raz..."

"I murdered him, I murdered my brother."

Salen couldn't hide the shocked expression that fell across his face. Razor glanced at him before turning away. Salen could feel Razor's pain in his own heart. Razor dragged his hands through his short spiky hair.

"I wish..." Razor slurred "I wish I could say that our father beat us, that our mother didn't love us, that we weren't given every chance in the world to succeed. But it would be a lie. Our parents gave us everything, they did their best to raise us and we threw it in their faces. I can't even remember which one of us started it, me or Mike."

Razor's eyes had a far away look as if he was trying to see into the past.

"It started small, just shoplifting. We loved the thrill, we were just having fun outside the 'norm' of our perfect little suburban life. When Mike got that phaser it was...it was the coolest thing I'd ever seen. We spent hours out in the woods practicing with it."

"So it was an accident?"

"Yes and no." Razor admitted. "It didn't happen out in the woods. We needed more of a challenge, we started to break into houses. At the same time we were both excelling in school, no one ever suspected anything. My mother was a little worried about how much time we spent together, that we weren't making outside friends, but my father had two brothers and he said that it was good that we were so close.

One night we broke into this house and the daughter was still home. I panicked, I wanted to leave, but Mike, he stayed calm, he had 'plans' for her. He said he wanted to have some fun with her. I didn't understand and he told me that I would when I was older, and that I should go keep watch at the front door."

"He raped her." Salen whispered in horror.

"I figured that out when she started to cry. We fought, I'm not even sure how I got the phaser, in the struggle it went off, and Mike was dead. My father came to my trial, that was the last I saw of him. My mother, I'm actually glad I never saw her again, I don't think I could face her."

"How old were you?"

"I was seventeen, Mike was nineteen. I ended up with a thirty year sentence, which clearly I didn't serve much of."

"Parole?"

"Not really. Beckett. He got me out, erased my past, gave me this new life. However none of that can give Mike back his."

Razor struggled to his feet and started searching for something more to drink. Salen got up and guided Razor away from the liquor cabinet and over to the couch. Razor sat down heavily and groaned in pain as he rubbed his temples. He looked like he'd welcome death. Salen wondered if this happened every year at this time, and figured this was why no one went near Razor on this day.

"Razor...I...I do not really know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything, Salen." Razor flashed in a sad smile. "I'm grateful just to have you here to talk to. Beckett was the only other one who knew. I didn't realize how much harder it would be to be the only one carrying the secret."

"I am honored that you would share it with me."

"Thank you for helping me bear the weight."

"Anytime."

"I'll be better tomorrow."

Razor pinched the bridge of his nose and then suddenly pitched forward. Salen rubbed between Razor's shoulder blades as he threw up on the floor. Heaving for breath Razor glanced up at Salen and smiled sheepishly.

"It might take two days to get over this binge." Razor forced a chuckle.

"As long as you are going to be okay."

"I will be. It's good to have you back."

"It's good to be back."

"Come here, I need you to sign something."

"What?"

Razor staggered to his feet and stumbled over to the console. He tapped on it a few times, clearly not getting his password right. Eventually he got it right and brought up a page. He stepped to the side and offered the console to Salen.

"What is this?"

"A formality. I'm making you my First Officer."

"What about Flash?"

"He just wants to fly this bird. he doesn't want the responsibility. I need you on this Salen, I'm too hot headed to run this ship on my own. I need your cool Vulcan logic to even me out."

Salen chuckled and reached out to put his handprint on the console, his digital signature. Razor's mood shifted instantly. He threw his arm over Salen's shoulders and pulled him into a rough hug. As much as Salen enjoyed being back, Razor had a powerful stink to him at the moment that wasn't making him particularly pleasant to be with.

"You need a shower, Razor."

"Yeah. But first I need my new First Officer's opinion on a new crew member."

"A new crew member?"

"We need a new doctor."

"Why?"

"Why? Salen, the last one drugged me unconscious when you needed me most, and stood by while you died slowly. You think I was going to trust that quack with our lives again? My first order was to get rid of him. Starfleet sent me two candidates to replace him, and I can't decide which one on my own."

"Who are they?"

"Well the first has been in the service for seventeen years as a CMO. He's got an excellent track record, and several medals of honor, his main drawback is that he has no experience in Vulcan medicine."

"Few doctors do. Who's the other one?"

"That's where things get tricky." Razor admitted. "I was shocked when I read the file, I couldn't even believe that they'd propose it."

"Who is it?"

"Your wife." 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

"Joanna? Are...are you insane?"

"Hey, Mate, I'm not the one who picked her, I swear. Headquarters sent me these two names and I was just as shocked as you when I saw her." Razor put his hands up in a helpless gesture. "I was just going to say 'no', but then I figured I should let you decide."

"No." Salen said instantly. "Absolutely not. It is too dangerous."

"Well in all fairness the Black Diamond itself has only once been attacked and that was by the Enterprise. She wouldn't be working out in the field."

"I...uh...I was not talking about field work." Salen admitted.

"Of course, trusting a man with your life isn't the same as trusting him with your wife."

"Razor, I am sorry, I just..."

"Hey, you don't have to explain it to me. Personally I'd be terrified to have a woman on board. I mean, this crew is my family...but...well, were not the best men in the galaxy and I think the temptation is something to be avoided."

"Thank you for understanding."

"I can't even imagine anyone on this ship hurting her...but let's face facts: Joanna's hot."

"Do not make me kill you."

Salen was only half joking. He was physically trembling from the thought of what might happen to her as the only woman aboard a ship of Dogs. He felt guilty for not trusting them with his mate, but he couldn't help it. Razor chuckled and tried to slap him on the back. Way too drunk for such a maneuver he lost his balance and before Salen could do anything they were both on the floor in a heap.

"Oof!" Salen gasped. "Razor, get off me."

"Uugh, I'm going to puke again."

"Don't you dare." Salen pushed Razor off. "You need to go to bed."

"I'm just going to sleep right here."

Salen rolled his eyes as Razor started to curl up on the floor. A small round cleaning robot had cleaned up the mess he'd earlier and now the automated device stuck its sensors back out to see if it was needed again. Salen shooed it away and got to his feet. Reaching down he tried to get Razor up as well. Razor glanced up at Salen before his sapphire blue eyes rolled back to white.

"Go away, Salen, just leave me here to die."

"You're the Commander of a starship now Razor, you can't be found passed out on the floor."

"The Dogs understand."

"That's not the point. Come on, get up."

"Can't, the room won't hold still."

Salen sighed heavily and gave up on tugging on Razor's arm. Taking a firm grip of Razor's wrist Salen hauled him up onto his shoulders in a fireman's carry. It took Razor a second to figure out what was going on. He tried to struggle out of Salen's grip, but he was in no condition to put up a fight. Salen checked the hall carefully before stepping out, he really didn't think it was good for the crew to see Razor like this.

"You are freaky strong." Razor muttered. "Remind me not to piss you off, or any other Vulcan for that matter."

"If anyone in the galaxy could test a Vulcan's temper it would be you."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

Shaking his head sadly Salen came to Razor's room. He forced Razor's palm against the scanner to unlock the door and stepped inside. Salen realized that he'd never been in Razor's room before. He was a little surprised to find it as clean as a prison cell. There were no photos, no memorabilia, nothing that marked the room as belonging to any one man over another. There were shelves on the wall for displaying objects, but they didn't even hold any dust. Razor had moved into the Colonel's quarters over a month ago, but the room might as well have been moved into yesterday.

Taking Razor over to his bed Salen just dropped him on top of the sheets. Razor grumbled something that may have been a 'thank you' and was snoring in seconds. Salen knew he should just leave, but he was suddenly curious. He went over to Razor's closet and opened it. Inside were a few uniforms, his black phaser proof field suit, and a couple of pairs of 'civilian' clothes. The dresser didn't offer any more clues as to the owner of the room.

Wandering over to Razor's desk Salen didn't activate his personal computer, but he did notice that there was nothing in the drawers. Salen already knew that Razor didn't have a house or even an apartment on Earth so all his worldly possession would have to be in this room. Even though Salen didn't own much himself he at least had a few objects of meaning on display in his room. Razor didn't seem to have collected a single tangible memory. The most personal item in Razor's room was his toothbrush.

"I wonder if your parents think you are still rotting on a prison planet somewhere."

Salen wished Beckett was still alive and once again felt the guilt of the accident that had caused him to take the former Colonel's life. For all his deviousness it was clear that he had been a father figure for Razor. Now that he was gone there was no one that would be able to replace that role in Razor's life.

When Razor moaned in his sleep Salen stopped his intrusion of his partner's personal affects. Salen walked over to the bed and pulled the blanket over from the far side of the bed to cover Razor in his alcohol induced restless sleep. Razor settled in a little, but it was clear that he was still stuck in the grip of a nightmare. Salen reached down and brushed at Razor's temple the way Pike had always done for him when he couldn't settle down.

Salen gasped a hot pain lanced up his arm as his fingertips touched Razor's skin. There was a sudden overwhelming stench of burning flesh in his nostrils combined with the scent of ozone. It was the very distinctive smell of a phaser burn. In his mind an image of a young man with somewhat familiar deep blue eyes and dark hair stared at him in shock. Salen jerked his hand away, the whole experience had only lasted a few seconds. Salen was uninjured however looked down at his hand in concern.

"What was that?"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

"This court finds Samuel William Donavan guilty of all charges, and sentences him to a term of no less than thirty years on the planetary institution of Echo 12."

There was a general murmur in the small courtroom as the on lookers reacted to the stiff sentence that had been handed down on the young defendant. It wasn't the first time a minor had been exiled to a prison planet, but it was certainly one of the longest known sentences. There had been far more charges than just the murder, ranging from breaking and entering to possession of an illegal phaser.

Sam's defense lawyer was already shouting about his plans to make an appeal and pleading with the judge to reconsider the lengthy sentence. What the defense attorney didn't know is that the judge had a young daughter of his own, one that looked strikingly similar to the girl that Sam had killed his brother to protect. However, he hadn't seen Sam's actions as ones of defense and protection. He believe despite the witness's testimony that Sam and his brother had been arguing about who would have her first and that they had broken into the house with intent.

Still in shock over all that had happened Sam did not make a very good case in his own defense. When asked what happened his only response had been a hollow 'I murdered my brother'. His attorney had tried to press him for details about how the phaser had gone off by accident, how it had never been his intention to hurt anyone, how he had stopped a rape, but Sam had stayed silent. He couldn't talk about it, no matter the consequences.

Sam jerked as one of the guards grabbed him by the upper arm to haul him to his feet. Forced to turn around to face the on lookers Sam found himself face to face with his father. The man who had done his best to raise his two sons stared at his only remaining child with an unreadable blank expression. He hadn't said a word to Sam or anyone in the courtroom since his son's arrest. After being placed in a set of ion cuffs Sam tried to take a step closer to his father before the guard stopped him.

"Dad, I'm so sorry. Forgive me...please."

Sam had been hopeful when his father had leaned forward slightly. However he had just been moving to get to his feet. Without a word he turned to leave Sam to his fate. Terrified Sam strained against the guard holding him to get to his father. The guard yanked Sam back and started to drag him away.

"Tell Mom I lover her!"

Razor jerked awake, drenched in a cold sweat. Sitting up he raked his hands through his short dark hair and took a deep breath. Razor never knew if his father had passed his message onto his mother or not. They were allowed to call him on the subspace once a month, but in the two years he spent on the prison planet they never once contacted him. Beckett had warned him right from the beginning that he wouldn't be allowed to visit his parents, he had assured him that it wasn't a problem.

Shaking the dream off Razor suddenly took notice of a pounding headache and a fuzzy feeling at the back of his throat. When his stomach rebelled he was just in time to make it into the bathroom where he was violently ill. Sitting on the cold bathroom floor Razor rubbed his temples against the punishing hangover.

"Ugh...Salen, why did you let me drink so much?" Razor moaned.

Stripping off his uniform Razor crawled into the shower and turned the water on. The hot water helped ease away some of his pain. Lathering up with a thick soap Razor rinsed it off and then turned the water to ice cold. He roared as the water turned cold and shook his head violently. Razor always ended his showers with a cold wash to wake him up and invigorate him.

Stepping out of the shower Razor dried off. He glanced over his shoulder at the mirror as he left the bathroom. He stared at the white scars slashed across his back for a moment before turning away. Reaching up he scratched at his now healed cut pointed ear before walking across his room on the hunt for a clean uniform. Putting on the fresh uniform he went in search of Salen to give him a proper greeting back to the Black Diamond.

Razor found Salen alone on the bridge. The ship was aimlessly wandering on autopilot as they waited for their next orders. With the vastness of space there was no real danger of being spotted, and the automatic evasion would keep them from colliding with anything inanimate. Salen was standing with his hands behind his back, as usual, staring out the front screen.

"How are you feeling, Razor?"

"There's no sneaking up on you with that artificially enhanced Vulcan hearing, is there?"

"Not really. Of course your scent gives you away before the sound does" Salen smiled as he turned around. "How are you feeling?"

"Not my best day, but I'll live."

"Good to hear."

Razor stepped up to Salen to give him a welcoming hug. With a sudden look of fear Salen backed away. Razor stopped short, not used to having his friend looking at him with such terror. Salen seemed to realize his reaction and forced a smile.

"Something wrong, Salen?"

"Maybe...I do not know." Salen admitted. "Can I...can I try something?"

"Sure." Razor shrugged. "What did you have in mind?"

"Just hold still."

Razor furrowed his brow, but shrugged again and stood his ground. When Salen brought his hand out from behind his back and reached towards Razor's temple it was Razor's turn to back away in sudden uneasiness. Salen flushed a bright green and put his hand away.

"Sorry. Never mind."

"Were you going to try a mind meld? Isn't that what got you in trouble the first time?"

"No, I mean, yes it did. However, a mind meld was not my intention. Something unusual happened last night when I touched you..."

"Oh shit, how drunk was I?" Razor asked concerned. "The last thing I remember is passing out on the bed. We didn't do anything..."

"No, no, nothing like that." Salen flushed a even deeper emerald shade.

"Oh, well in that case I'll be more cooperative." Razor breathed a sigh of relief. "Go ahead and do whatever it was you were going to do."

"No. Never mind."

Razor rolled his eyes as Salen went to step further away. Worried about the Vulcan's unusual behavior Razor reached out and grabbed Salen's wrist. Salen tried to pull away but Razor just pressed his had against his temple. Salen weld his eyes shut looking for all the world like he was expecting pain. As far as Razor could tell nothing had happened. Salen slowly opened his eyes and looked at where his hand was against Razor's forehead. Salen instantly relaxed.

"Uh...Razor? Dingo?" Tyger asked as he stepped onto the bridge. "What are you two doing?"

"I have no idea." Razor smiled. "Some sort of Vulcan trust game."

"It is nothing," Salen muttered "Razor, you can let go of me now."

Razor released Salen and laughed as he stumbled back a few steps from having been trying to free himself. Tyger chuckled and shook his head sadly. Tyger looked Salen over for a moment.

"So, is this our new First Officer or what?"

"Yup." Razor answered proudly.

"Congratulations, Dingo. We were all holding our breath there for a while."

"Holding your breath?" Salen asked confused.

"We weren't sure you'd come back, figured you may find married life too tempting."

"Dogs gotta stick together." Razor smiled. "Besides, we get a lot more shore leave than most. Plenty of time for women."

"At least you don't have to pay for them." Tyger laughed. "Of course, we're still without a CMO. Has Starfleet sent any suggestions?"

"Yeah, there sending us some Dr. Hart or someone." Razor replied.

"They didn't give you a choice of people to pick from?" Tyger asked surprised.

"Nope. Guess they don't trust me with the big decisions just yet."

"Well I guess one Doc is as good as the next." Tyger shrugged and then smiled at Salen. "As long as we got Dingo back I'm happy."

"Thank you." Salen gave Tyger a shallow bow.

Before Tyger could ask about the wedding the communication system started beeping. Tyger walked over and announced that it was headquarters checking in. Knowing that most communications between Starfleet and the Black Diamond were for Command Officers only he excused himself and left.

"Razor," Salen said before he could answer Starfleet's call "thanks for not telling Tyger about Joanna."

"I figured it best for everyone to keep that between us. One of the privileges of rank is getting to keep secrets."

"That is another thing that I was wondering. Do any of the Dogs resent me for so quickly rising to First Officer?"

"Honestly no one else wants the job?"

"Why not?"

"Dogs don't like making decisions, they like following orders and being in the field. Plus I can't think of a single Dog that is interested in the risk of having to shoulder the weight of becoming Commander if something happens to me."

"What about you? Are you enjoying the promotion?"

"Not really. I kinda wish Beckett was calling the shots."

"I am sorry."

"He drove you to kill him. No one blames you for what happened, me least of all." Razor said honestly. "Maybe it was time for him to give up Command anyway, he started making some bad choices near the end."

The com panel beeped again, reminding the pair that they still have Superiors to report to. Razor wasn't looking forward to talking to Thomline. If there was one man in the galaxy that Razor would never forgive it was Thomline. It was under Thomline's direct order that Beckett had been backed into a corner about leaving Salen to die when he knew that Spock could save him. Trying to rein in his temper Razor pressed the contact. The man who came up on the screen however was not Thomline.

"Admiral Kinler?" Razor asked confused.

"General Kinler now, Colonel Donavan." Kinler corrected.

"What happened to Thomline?"

"Admiral Pike finally got to him."

"What?" Salen asked in alarm.

"You didn't think your father was going to sit back and not make someone pay for nearly allowing you to die, did you?" Kinler asked. "Admiral Pike was so tenacious about digging into the Diamond Dogs that eventually Starfleet just gave him Thomline to shut him up."

"Dangerous." Razor said without thinking.

"Dangerous?" Salen repeated. "My father did not hurt him...did he?"

"I believe that Donavan meant that it was dangerous for your father to go after the Dogs."

"Starfleet would have to kill me as well if they ever so much as touch him." Salen growled dangerously.

"Which is why they gave into him." Kinler chuckled. "We have no interest in losing you. I also hinted that they'd have to take Donavan out as well."

"Hell yes they would!"

"Not to mention Spock, Kirk, the list of Pike's loyal friends goes on. Giving Thomline a dishonorable discharge seemed the more...logical solution." Kinler smiled. "But we have more pressing matter to attend to. The Dogs are needed on Ioa 7 for negotiations with a group of men that have taken six Starfleet Officers hostage. Details are being sent to your computer. Good luck, Gentlemen."

"Thank you, Sir. It is an honor to be working with you again."

"You as well, Razor."

Kinler shut off the communications and the computers came alive as the information about the mission was uploaded. Razor went over to the intercom system and announced to the crew that they'd been given a mission and requested Flash to the helm immediately. Razor walked back over to Salen and noticed that his friend had an expression on his face that was a mixture of deep thought and confusion.

"What's that look for, Salen?"

"I do not understand. Starfleet does not negotiate with terrorists or hostage takers, and yet we are being sent to negotiate with these men."

"When Kinler said 'negotiate' he meant for us to do it the Diamond Dog way."

"And what exactly does that mean?" Salen said with a knowing smile.

"Kill anyone who gets between us and getting our fellow Starfleet members back."

"That sounds more like our kind of mission."

"Ever mission has one objective that trumps over all others."

"What's that?"

"Leave no man behind." 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

"We're going on a rescue mission without a CMO?"

"We don't have time to pick him up, Cobalt." Razor informed. "Toby will act as CMO in the meantime."

"Pariah is a doctor?" Cobalt asked in surprise.

"Don't call him that. And, yes, he's a medical doctor."

Salen was a little surprise to learn that the onboard torture expert was also a medical doctor as well. He had almost forgotten about Toby's main role on the Diamond since he'd always been asked to take over for 'interrogation' using mind melds. However, it had become painfully clear that he was not in well enough control over his telepathy to use it. Salen hadn't even dared to brush at Joanna's mind during there more intimate moments in fear of giving her Pa'nar Syndrome again.

"Colonel," Flash called from the helm "we will arrive at the outer limits of the Ioa solar system in five minutes."

"Be sure to cloak before dropping out of Warp, we have no idea what kind of detection systems these scum have."

"Where did these men come from?" Ice asked. "Are they natives?"

"We don't know. Ioa was colonized by the Federation six hundred years ago. All the Ioa planets are Federation loyal, and have never shown any hostility or desire to become independent. The local Ioa government denies any ties to the hostage takers an has no information on them to give. The six Starfleet Officers were actually not even on duty, they were home on leave."

"The Officers are Ioaians...does that strike anyone else as odd? I mean the hostage takers clearly aren't trying to stop a Starfleet project if the Officers were on leave."

"No this a private job." Razor confirmed.

"What are they hoping to gain from kidnapping Starfleet personnel?"

"Money."

"Ransom?" Cobalt repeated in surprise. "They can't possible expect to actually get any money from Starfleet, they have to know that we don't negotiate."

"Desperate men do desperate things." Razor shrugged. "Problem is that desperate men tend to be the most dangerous and we have no intel on what kind of weapons they have, or even their numbers."

"How did we get their location?" Ice asked.

"Amateur mistake, they left their com unit on too long during their demands and the local cops were able to triangulate a position."

"Would this be a matter for the police if the hostages were just civilians?" Salen asked.

"Absolutely."

Everyone's attention was brought to the forward screen as Flash dropped them out of Warp. The only sign that the cloaking was active was a bright red flashing display on the console. The Diamond had been running the Romulan devices given to Starfleet by Empress Cel'est for years and so far it was still unclear if there truly were long term ill effects on human physiology. The Dogs used the cloak as infrequently as they could just in case. However right now they were basically going into a mission blind.

"Okay, Kids," Razor announced "Ice, Cobalt, Tyger, and Rayne you're going to be our eyes on this. Ice, Rayne don't take any snipe shots unless we're taking fire."

"Unless or until?" Ice chuckled.

"Cobalt, Tyger, make sure your partners don't get trigger happy on us."

"Got it, Boss." Cobalt and Tyger chimed together.

"Salen, you and I are going to head the five men of Alpha Team on the physical rescue, they're getting geared up and so should we. Eyes sharp on this one, don't take any chances. I'll be damned if I'm going to lose anyone on my first Command mission."

It hadn't occurred to Salen that this was the first mission that the Dogs had been on since Beckett's death. The Dogs had had a lot of wounds to lick after everything that had happened. Flash put them in a standard orbit around Ioa 2 and the others left to gear up. Razor looked Salen over and smiled.

"You ready for this?"

"Yes."

"That thing in your ear, it only does hearing now right?" Razor asked.

"That is what I have been told."

"However it hasn't been tested." Razor added.

"No."

"I'm going to trust you on this because I need you to have my back on this mission. But if you feel anything like what happened before I need to know."

"Razor, I do not want to be controlled by the device anymore than you want me to be."

"Just making sure we're all clear." Razor nodded. "Let's roll."

"Roll? Walking would be easier."

"Stop being so Vulcan."

Salen was left a little confused as Razor rolled his eyes and headed down to the locker room. Salen shrugged it off and followed. Once in the second skin uniform Salen felt his heart starting to race and the adrenaline start to push through his blood. For a moment he worried that they hadn't deactivated the hormone controlling portion of the device, however, he knew that there was always going to be a little of the 'mission high'. He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath.

"Excited?" Razor asked knowingly.

"Yes." Salen admitted.

"Me too."

Razor smiled brightly and addressed his crew one last time. With everything as set as it could be they were beamed down to the planet. It was the middle of the night and the one small moon cast a reddish glow on the forest. They were a mile from the ranch where the men had used the com to make their demands. Slipping through the leaf litter they moved like a pack of wolves with Razor and Salen in lead.

They came to the edge of the clearing that held the sprawling ranch. It looked more like a luxury home rather than a terrorist hide out. Razor brought everyone to a halt and they crouched down in the cover of the trees. Razor looked the situation over for a minute.

"Okay guys, help me out...I don't see a look out, or guards of any kind."

"There's no one outside." Salen confirmed. "They might be keeping watch digitally."

"Infra-red no doubt." Cobalt added. "That would be the cheapest and most effective in the woods."

"The suits keep our heat signatures to a minimum." Razor muttered. "Cobalt, go give them something bright on the North side of the perimeter to look at."

"How bright?"

"No explosions."

"Damn." Cobalt grumbled.

"Something warm enough to look like a group setting up in that direction. Ice go with him. Tyger, Rayne set up along the South to give us cover fire if needed. The rest of you fan out around in semi circle facing the South entrance, but stay hidden. Salen and I are going to try and get in quietly and see if we can get eyes on the hostages before any fighting breaks out. Do not fire unless given the order or if they start a fire fight."

"Aye, Sir." The group responded.

Salen and Razor made their way around towards the South while everyone got into position. Cobalt informed them a few minutes later that he had a heat decoy burning. With the distraction set Razor ordered Ice and Cobalt into a sniper position on the North side. They hunkered down in the shadows for a moment.

"Any motion?" Razor asked the team.

"Some shadows moving behind the blinds on the North side." Cobalt informed. "They don't even seem mildly interested or alarmed. If they have infrared they'd know were were here. Are you sure this is the right place?"

"Honestly I'm not sure anymore." Razor replied. "We are dealing with local cop intel, this could just be a house which is why I don't want any weapons fired until we have confirmation of an enemy target. In fact everyone set to stun...something about this doesn't seem right."

Salen readjusted his phaser to stun. They usually didn't bother with stun since they weren't usually interested in the lives of the men they were up against. However Salen was also starting to get the feeling that they were about to break in on an innocent family. Razor made sure everyone was in place and he motioned Salen to follow him as they closed in on the house. Razor slunk up onto the deck and then to the back sliding glass door.

"Coded lock." Razor whispered. "Salen, you seem to have a magic touch with these things. Think you can crack it?"

"Let me see."

Taking out a small field knife Salen snapped the face plate off the code panel. It was an inexpensive lock that was really only designed to keep innocent people locked out. Within a few minutes Salen had it rewired and the lock disengaged.

"Nice work."

"It was all too easy. I think we have the wrong house."

"So do I. But it's our job to make sure."

Salen nodded as Razor slowly opened the glass door. Salen could hear both his own and Razor's hearts as they pounded against their ribs. Trying to block out the distracting sound Salen followed Razor into darkened house. They crept towards the hallway that would lead to the front room where Cobalt noticed the motion. Salen touched Razor's shoulder to get him to stop for a moment. He leaned in close to Razor's pointed cut ear.

"I smell blood." Salen whispered.

"Maybe we got it right after all."

Razor knew he could use a voice so low that a human standing where Salen was wouldn't have heard a word of it, but Salen caught it all. Taking opposite sides of the hall they moved forward. Razor paused once again when they heard male laughter. There was a closed door at the end of the hall that had a light shining from underneath. Razor glanced at Salen and gave him a silent order to kick the door down.

Salen nodded and crept closer and bunched up his muscles. He wasn't sure how strong the door was so he prepared to ensure that he destroyed it on the first try. Whipping around in a midlevel round house kick he was able to impart kinetic energy into the kick along with his own strength. Rather than simply breaking the door Salen managed to knock the hinges out of the frame. Razor rushed through the new entrance way with his phaser held at chest height.

"What the...!"

"On the ground!" Razor roared with authority. "Now!"

There were cries of surprise from the five men in the room who had been drinking and playing cards. It was still unclear if they were a threat or not. Salen came up to Razor's side with his own phaser drawn, waiting for the call. Razor repeated his order for the men to hit the ground. Instead all of them scrambled for their weapons that were worn at their hips. Razor took out the largest man in the center with a stunning shot before switching to kill. Salen switched to kill simply to get more power and fired two shots at the points that held up the curtains over the front window to expose the scene to Cobalt and the sniper Ice.

"Kill, kill, kill!" Razor barked three times to change the team's tactics. "Ice!"

Ice's sniper fire broke through the front window and brought down two men before they found cover from the window. Salen was able to fire a shot through another man's chest just as the man fired at him. The phaser blast slammed into Salen's chest, but his suit took the punishment, the other man was not as lucky.

The remaining two men knocked over the glass table to use as cover as the fired blindly at Razor and Salen. With higher powered weapons than available even to Starfleet Officers Razor and Salen were able to fire directly through the glass to bring the last two down. The fight had lasted less than a minute.

"Front room clear, clear, clear." Razor informed the rest. "Move in, and secure. Salen take the kitchen, I'll clean the side room."

"Aye."

Salen stepped down the short hall to the open kitchen. A quick glance told him it was clear, but it warranted a closer inspection. With his phaser held high he swept the large kitchen. He could hear the rest of the team kicking in doors through out the rest of the expansive home. Salen lowered his weapon.

"Top level secure, Sir." Reaper from Alpha Team informed Razor over the radio.

"Kitchen clea..."

Salen stopped as he heard a sharp crack from behind him. He turned around just in time to see a man spring from a pantry with a knife in hand. Salen jerked back as the man slashed the blade at his eyes. Baring his teeth in anger at having a knife drawn on him Salen lost himself for a moment and dropped his phaser in favor of hand to hand combat.

The man stepped back in fright at Salen's animalistic growl. The next time he brandished the knife at Salen the Vulcan easily snatched his wrist and with a sharp twist he broke it. If the man had surrendered Salen would have ended the fight there. However he tried to swing his fist at Salen's face. Reacting on a combination of training and instinct Salen yanked the man closer, released his wrist and grabbed his opponent's lower jaw and placed the other hand on his shoulder. With little effort Salen snapped the man's neck.

The sound of the man's vertebrae snapping was accompanied by a flash of white pain that blinded Salen. Not expecting the intense wash of pain and fear that lanced through him Salen dropped the dead man and whirled around. He fully expected to find someone behind him. He thought the pain had been another attacker. However, no one was there.

"Salen?" Razor called.

Before Salen could reply to his partner's worried voice Razor appeared on the scene. He looked down at the dead man and eyed Salen warily. Salen took a step closer and Razor visibly tensed.

"Razor?"

"You still yourself, Dingo?"

"What do you mean?"

"This was always about the time where you kinda lost it to your 'blood lust'."

"He attacked me."

"And that's fine...but you're okay?"

"I am."

"No thoughts about going on a Vulcan rampage?"

"None."

"Looks like the Doc pulled through for us, nice to know." Razor relaxed. "Good job."

"Colonel," Reaper came over the radio "all six hostages were found in the basement. They are mostly unharmed, a little shaken. One has a deep bloody cut, nothing too serious. All in all they are in good health."

"Get statements and escort them to the Starfleet Base in town for medical attention."

"Aye, Sir."

Razor looked around with a concerned expression on his face. He wandered out into the carnage of the front room and looked around with general disapproval. Salen picked up and holstered his phaser before joining Razor in the front room.

"This makes no sense." Razor said. "They had no idea we were coming. I mean I know we are good, but they were holding Starfleet Officers hostage and they didn't even post a look out. No one is this dumb."

"I am surprised that they were able to capture the Officers in the first place."

"That's another good question." Razor nodded.

"Hopefully the released men will have a good answer."

"They'd better. And if they don't I know someone who does."

Salen wasn't sure what Razor meant. He was still a little shaken himself over the odd reaction he'd had to killing his attacker. His main fear was that the device behind his ear was doing something it shouldn't and he rubbed at it. Razor went over to the man who he had stunned and secured his wrists behind his back with ion zip ties. Salen knit his brow as Razor lifted the still unconscious man up and slung him over his shoulders.

"Razor...what are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?"

"It looks like you are bring him with us."

"You got it." Razor replied.

"Why?"

"It's called taking a prisoner." 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

"Razor, please, you can not do thi..."

"Salen, we are not having this conversation right now...or ever for that matter."

"Torturing this man is not going to get us anywhere."

"We won't know until we try." Razor shrugged.

"What are you going to do with him when you are done?" Salen demanded.

"Same thing we always do with the scum we catch, kill him."

"This is murder!"

"This coming from a man who just snapped someone's neck like a toothpick." Razor snarled.

"That was self defense."

"Bullshit." Razor spat. "You didn't have to kill him, you'd already broken his wrist, he had no weapon. And he's not the first to have gotten in your way when your Vulcan instincts over take you."

"You are right, and I was wrong to kill him."

"No you weren't." Razor countered. "It's what we do, it's what are expected to do, it's what keeps us alive, and what makes the Dogs the best Starfleet has to offer."

"Does what we do have to include torture?"

"You draw your lines in strange places Salen."

Razor clearly felt the conversation was over and turned to open his door to lead Salen out. Salen stepped back and widened his stance to show he wasn't going anywhere. Razor closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose with a quiet groan. Salen had tried to start this conversation as soon as they had returned to the ship, but Razor had given him a glare that could kill. Salen had hounded Razor's steps all the way to his room.

"Salen, go away, go to bed."

"How am I supposed to sleep knowing what Toby is going to do to that man?"

"That man imprisoned six Starfleet Officers and left them to die of starvation in a basement...you of all people should want vengeance for that."

"The men responsible for my pain are all dead."

"Well congratulations," Razor snarled "the rest of us still have some work to do."

"I didn't mean it like that."

"Honestly I don't care. That man has information that I desperately need. Now go to bed, Salen, and let me do the same. It doesn't concern you anymore."

Salen sighed. He knew he shouldn't care about the kidnapper's fate, for what he'd done he probably deserved the pain he was to endure if he didn't cooperate. Still his stomach churned at the thought of him being strapped into Toby's chair. He knew there was only one thing he could do to stop it.

"Razor...let me...let me get the information for you."

"You'd feel better if you got to do the torturing?"

"No, I want to avoid having him tortured. I want to do a mind meld to learn his secrets."

"Hell no. Absolutely not."

"Razor..."

"Did you spend time with the Vulcans on Natala in the past few months?"

"Um...no."

"What about Spock?" Razor asked. "Spend some time with him?"

"No...what does that ha..."

"So what you're telling me is that you're no more qualified to perform mind melds now then you were three months ago."

"I can do it."

"I like your confidence, but the answer is 'no'. I am not going to risk losing my First Officer to Pa'nar over some worthless kidnapper."

"Raz..."

"Beside, you think a mind meld with you isn't torture?" Razor tried to sound lighthearted, but failed. "Did a single one of the men you touched live? Or did they scream and writhe in agony until insanity or death claimed them?"

"And I regret tha..."

"I don't. Your little form of torture saved thousands of lives, you got that little girl back to her Daddy, and if I thought for one second that you could reach into someone's mind without getting yourself hurt I would let you do it in a heartbeat."

"I will be careful."

"You were careful with Joanna, she almost died."

"That was diff..."

"Salen, I didn't want to have to do, however..." Razor walked up and put his hands on Salen's shoulders "I am pulling rank on you."

"What?"

"I'm issuing you my strictest of Direct Orders. I order you to drop this subject and to stay away from the prisoner. I swear to space I will lock you up if I have to. Do I have to do that?"

"No, Sir." Salen answered respectfully.

"Good. Now get some sleep."

"Yes, Sir."

Razor took a breath to say more, but Salen wasn't interested in hearing it. Turning on his heels as if he had just been dismissed by an Admiral Salen left. Salen headed straight for his room, fully intending to follow his Colonel's orders. Once in his room Salen paced around for a while before laying down. In bed he couldn't keep his eyes closed. His stomach was churning and his mind was racing over the time he had spent under Toby's knife. He had asked to be hurt then, he couldn't imagine going through it without a safe word.

"This man will have to say more than 'diamond' to get them to stop." Salen sighed to himself.

Sitting up Salen raked his hands through his ivory hair a few times, but it didn't make him feel any better. Part of him knew that Razor was right, that this was just part of the job, and that men like him didn't deserve mercy in the first place. Salen thought back to the men who he had melded with and was ashamed of how he had acted and the pain he had caused.

"How can I call myself Vulcan? I have murdered...and I will do it again." Salen thought out loud. "And I will save lives doing it...but is it a logical solution to the galaxy's crime? Does it matter? I am certainly not turning back. I have a home here, a purpose, good friends...am I really going to risk it all for a kidnapper who is as good as dead?"

Laying back down Salen stared up at the ceiling. He wasn't even sure why he was so upset over this man and his fate. The man knew he was playing with fire when he took six Starfleet Officers and locked them in his basement. Salen had no regret and no remorse over the three men he'd killed today.

"So why is this one bothering me so much?"

Salen jumped out of bed suddenly. Stripping off his uniform Salen stepped into the shower and turned on the hot water. Leaning his forehead against the tile he allowed the hot water to slip down his back. Closing his eyes he saw a flash of his own face, twisted with rage. The image was accompanied by a wash of fear and a stab of pain, then just black. Opening his eyes Salen thought about the incident with the man he'd killed with his hands. It hadn't been like a mind meld, and it certainly wasn't something he had been trying to do.

"I need to get control of myself."

After a good twenty minutes in the shower Salen turned it off and stepped out. He dried off and decided to get back into a clean uniform rather than go to bed. Salen left his room and wandered to the observation deck. The blue aurora of Warp speed was waving against the glass. They didn't like spending any more time then they had to around civilized planets. With their mission basically done they had taken their human prize and high tailed it out of the system.

"I should go to bed."

Turning away from the window Salen wandered the hallways. He was only mildly surprised when he came to the heavy door that lead into Toby's chamber. The man would be there, spending the night in the chair looking at the decorations on the wall. Salen put his palm against the door. Taking a deep breath Salen could smell the man's sweat and fear. Unable to stand by any longer Salen started to break into Toby's new code lock. It was about fifteen minutes before the code lock gave him entry.

"Nice try with the new lock, Toby." Salen smiled. "If they want a lock I can not break they'd better ask me to design one."

Knowing that he was breaking his promise Salen looked around to make sure Razor wasn't around. As he stepped into the room the pungent stench of fear slapped him in the face. The air was colder and more humid in the chamber to make it feel more dank and to further drive fear into the heart of the victim. The lights were very dim as always, with a bluish cast that added to icy feel of the room.

Salen stepped further into room, drawn towards the man strapped into the chair. He was muscular, and he'd been stripped to waist to add to his venerability. It turned Salen's stomach to look at him as the man stared at him with terror in his eyes. He had been tightly gagged and was trying to plead. Salen hesitated to proceed.

"I am here to save you from unnecessary pain." Salen said quietly. "All I need from you is the truth."

The man tried to talk, clearly trying to beg.

"No, I can not trust your word. I will have to look deeper. I am a Vulcan, if you relax and allow me to look into your mind there will be no pain."

The man's eyes widened in horror, however after the initial shock he nodded and attempted to look relaxed. It surprise Salen to see how quick this man was to allow his mind to be invaded. That was usually something only an innocent would offer. Salen did his best to control his own nervousness as he approached the man. Stepping up to within a few feet Salen slowly reached his hand out until he was almost touching him.

"I didn't want to believe it." Razor's deep voice came out of the shadows.

"Razor?" Salen froze in place.

"I thought I gave you a direct order."

"You did."

"Then why are you here?" Razor growled darkly.

"I had to try."

"That's not good enough."

"Good enough for what?"

Salen was completely taken off guard as Razor rushed up and grabbed a fist full of his hair. Razor nearly yanked Salen off his feet as he dragged him towards the door. Salen grabbed Razor's wrist to try and free himself, but there was no way to escape without having a good deal of his hair torn out. Doubled over by Razor's grip Salen was forced to stumble along by his side as they rushed down the hallway.

"Razor!" Salen snarled. "Let me go, you are hurting me."

Razor was icily silent as he continued to force Salen along. When they got to their destination Razor threw Salen roughly to the floor. Salen barely managed to put his hands out to catch himself as he hit the hard metal floor. He glanced around and found himself in a room that barely measured six by six feet. His blood flashed to ice as he realized what was happening.

Salen sprang to his feet and whipped around, but it was too late. Razor slammed his hand down on the contact that caused the blue ion bars to jump into place. Salen backed away and quickly bumped into the steel wall behind him. His heart raced as he began to pant for breath from the revival of his claustrophobia. Salen stared at Razor, but he didn't see any hint of his friend's usual warmth in his deep blue eyes. Razor looked more hurt than anything else as he turned to walk away. Salen rushed up to the bars, careful not to touch them.

"Razor, wait..."

"I'm sorry, Salen, you made me do this."

"No, please, do not leave me here."

"This ship can't have two Alpha dogs, I need every man on my crew to follow my orders...that includes you."

"If you feel the need to punish me I would rather be beaten."

"Normally I would, however with you I know this will be more effective..." 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six

"Name?"

"Um...Sam Donavan."

Trying his best to keep his panic at bay Sam looked around the admissions hall to the infamous prison planet. It had been a long journey in the belly of a transport ship to get here. The dark trip had been his first time in space, but in the windowless cell it might have just been a drive across the country rather than across the stars. Sam tugged at the ion restraints that kept his hands behind his back. His eyes were watering, but not with tears.

"I'm sure you've noticed by now the acrid air, it's the crystals from the mine in their raw form." The guard said. "You'll get used to it."

The guard who was there to greet him was tapping information into a tablet. When he was done he looked Sam over with a sad shake of his head. Sam was the youngest to ever arrive at Echo 12 and it was clear from the look on the guard's face that he didn't think that Sam's chances of survival were very good. Feeling like he was going to be sick Sam concentrated on taking slow breaths, which only served to bring the sharp stench of the mine deeper into his lungs.

"My name is Guard Reily, and that's what you'll call me. If you don't know a guard's name you call him 'Sir', got that?"

"Yes, Sir."

"You've forgotten my name already?"

"No, Si..." Sam stopped as he suddenly caught on. "No, Guard Reily."

"That's better. Your number is 624791, repeat it, memorize it, you'll need that number to get anything around here."

"624791."

"Nice." Reily nodded in approval. "You just might be the first one to not ask me to repeat their number."

Sam was still struggling with his rebelling stomach. Reily watched his new charge with a slight smile twitching at the corner of his lips. The guard didn't look very old, either almost or just past thirty. He waited as if he was expecting something. Unable to control himself any longer Sam turned away from the guard and knelt down on one knee. Bending over Sam retched violently on the stone floor. With his hands still pinned behind his back he was forced to lick the bile off his lips before standing back up and facing Reily.

"You've got a cast iron stomach, Donavan." Reily said impressed. "I've been waiting for that, most men vomit the instant they take a breath of Echo's air. You made it nearly ten minutes, that might just be a record."

Reily chuckled, but Sam didn't find any humor in the situation. He was starting to tremble and he knew that such an obvious sign of weakness was likely to get him killed. Life as a miner was hard enough, life as a miner on a prison planet was downright dangerous. It was one of the darker aspects of Starfleet that the dilithium crystals that powered their Starships were mostly mined by prisoners. Reily put his tablet down and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Okay here are the written rules: don't start any fights, don't be late to meals, get your work done by the end of the day, which happens to last twenty-seven hours around here." Reily informed. "Here are the unwritten rules: if you do start a fight be damn sure you finish it, anyone late to dinner doesn't eat, and if you don't pull your weight around here the Warden will turn a blind eye when the other inmates go to kill you. Understand?"

"Yes, Guard Reily."

"Welcome to Echo 12, Kid."

Razor woke with a jerk. Glancing at the time strip he found that it was only three am. Rolling over he pulled the covers over his head and tried to go back to sleep. His stomach hurt as much as on that first day on Echo 12. However, it wasn't his past that was bothering him, it was his First Officer locked in the brig that was gnawing at him.

"I can't let him out yet." Razor muttered to himself. "He has to learn to follow orders, for his safety and for the rest of the crew's."

Once again trying to get back to sleep Razor closed his eyes. The panic in Salen's voice when he'd left him returned to Razor and he could just imagine the Vulcan curled up in the corner of the small cell. Sitting up Razor growled in frustration. Reaching over to the nightstand he pressed his hand against the communication panel.

"Toby? Toby, you awake?"

"Not really..." A sleepy Toby replied. "What's going on, Colonel?"

"I want to talk to that prisoner."

"Now?"

"Now."

"Any particular reason for the rush?" Toby asked.

"Just meet me down there."

"Aye, Sir."

Razor got out of bed and wrestled with his field uniform. They never wore a regular ship uniform when working with prisoners. It was far more intimidating to stroll in wearing the fitted suit with its almost armor like flexible plating on it. Razor walked past a mirror and noticed that his hair was completely unruly. Ignoring his hair he made his way down to the belly of the ship where his prey still waited. When he got there Toby was looking over the code lock with a puzzled look.

"Razor, has Salen been mucking with this lock again?"

"Yeah." Razor sighed. "I don't want to talk about it."

"Is he okay? I mean the last time he broke in here..."

"It has nothing to do with that. He's fine...just too curious for his own good at times."

"Curiosity, a rare trait in a Vulcan." Toby chuckled. "He's a handful."

"You don't have to tell me."

"How dow you want to play this one?" Toby asked seriously.

"With the mood I'm in right now I'm thinking of just beating the truth out of him with my bare hands."

"Okay then, I guess I'll let you take lead. Just remember that taking out your aggression on a prisoner isn't always the best way to get them to talk."

"Just open the door."

"Aye, Sir."

Razor had the code to the lock, but Toby punched it in for him and the door slid open. Razor walked in with a glare in his eyes like an angry lion. He knew that part of him was blaming this man for turning Salen against his orders, the other part of him was just pissed at him for letting six fellow Starfleet Officers slowly starve to death in his basement. Razor stood in front of the lounge like chair that the man had been strapped down to. At some point he had either fallen asleep or passed out.

Looking the man over Razor looked for any physical cues on his body that might tell him a little about his prisoner. He had an old phaser wound on his lower right abdomen. There were a few random tattoos, mostly of naked women, but nothing that tied him to any known gang. His strongly muscled body meant he was more likely a goon than the head boss. Bosses tended to be a little thick around the middle from the rich life that their 'employees' provided them with.

Toby circled around to the back to stay out of sight, but Razor beckoned him to come around into the man's view. He found it worked best if they felt out numbered. Ready to wake the man up Razor put his boot heel on the chair between the man's slightly spread legs. He leaned forward which placed the majority of his heavy boot down on the man's crotch. Instantly snapped away by the uncomfortable pressure he stared at Razor with his eyes wide with fear.

"Good morning." Razor said with a forced smile.

The man was still wearing the thick leather gag and made a sound of protest. Razor leaned in to remove it, causing him to place more of his weight between his victims legs. By the time he untied the gag the man was panting against the nauseating pain and sweat was beading against his skin. Knowing he had the man's attention Razor put his foot back on the floor.

"W...who are you?" The man demanded.

"My name's Razor, this is Toby. Who the fuck are you?"

"Daft, Daft Kinler."

"Daft? What an amazingly appropriate name for you." Razor smiled brightly. "So, Daft, tell me why you're here."

"I have no idea, look if this is because of Jimmy I swear to Space I've broken all ties to him. If he has your merchandise you need to talk to him, I have nothing to do with it."

"I don't care what sick shit you and your friends peddle in your spare time." Razor growled. "I'm far more interested in the six Starfleet Officers you were keeping in your basement."

"Starfleet Officers? There weren't any Star..."

Razor wasn't interested in letting Daft finish his lie and punched him in the face hard enough to break his cheek bone. He had specifically avoided the nose, knowing that the blood loss from a broken nose could quickly turn life threatening. The man was clearly used to taking a punch, but he still growled in pain.

"Now then, tell me more about the Starfleet Officers."

"Fuck you!" Daft spat.

"Toby, can you deal with him for a minute. I'm ready to slit his throat and move on to the next guy."

"The next guy?" Daft asked anxiously.

"You didn't think we'd just take one of you, did you?" Razor lied. "You know come to think of it the other guy looks a lot like you...a brother perhaps?"

"No!" Daft cried in panic. "He has nothing to do with this! He wasn't even supposed to be at the house!"

"If you don't want me to go drag your bother in here you'd better start talking." Razor bluffed. There had been one man there that looked a lot like Daft, however Salen had broken his neck.

"Jimmy and I have been dealing in illegal dilith..."

"Cut to the part where you kidnapped Starfleet Officers." Razor interrupted.

"We didn't kidnap anyone!" Daft shouted. "They weren't Officers, they were drug runners!"

"Drug runners?" Razor repeated skeptically.

"The men in the basement came to us, they gave us cash to hole up in the basement till the heat was off."

"I'm going to need a better lie than that."

"It's the truth!"

"Toby..."

Razor took a few steps back and let Toby step in. Daft yanked against the leather bindings trying to get away from him. Toby had a small case in his hands and he slowly opened it. Inside were five small round disks. Toby took them out one at a time and pressed them against Daft's skin where they stuck in place. He placed two on Daft's chest, two low on his abdomen and the last just above his belly button.

"What is tha..."

Daft ended in a heart wrenching scream as Toby flicked the middle disk, which activated all of them. Razor had seen this device before, but he wasn't really sure what exactly it did. The disks now had a slight red glow to their edges. Daft battled and thrashed as best he could to escape, but he wasn't going anywhere. Shaking violently as the disks dug their electrical fangs into his flesh Daft screamed again.

"Razor!" Daft cried. "Razor, what are you doing? Stop!"

Razor took a step back and looked at Toby with concern. Daft had used his name as if they knew each other well. Toby didn't seem to think that it was anything out of the ordinary and just shrugged. Throwing his head back Daft started to show signs of going into a massive seizure. Toby leaned in and calmly flicked the middle disk again to turn them off. Daft relaxed, but continued to growl in pain.

"Who are you people?" Daft panted.

"You don't get to ask anymore questions. Now then, who hired you to imprison the Starfleet Officers? Clearly you didn't do it on your own."

"If they really were Starfleet I swear I had no idea." Daft whimpered. "They wanted to be there."

"They wanted to be beaten and left to starve to death in your basement behind a locked door?"

"I didn't lock the door."

"Are you suggesting they did?"

"Why would I want to kidnap Officers?" Daft snarled angrily. "Why would I want to bring Starfleet down on me?"

"Ransom."

"Ransom?" Daft actually laughed. "No one gets ransom out of Starfleet."

"You called it in, you made the demand."

"No." Daft shook his head. "Never."

"Then your boss did."

"I'm my own boss!"

"Bullshit." Razor rolled his eyes. "Assholes like you don't make it to the top of the criminal food chain. Who are you protecting?"

"No one, I run the op..."

Razor had given Toby a subtle sign and he had reached in and activated the disks again. Clawing at the arms of the chair that he was bound to Daft screamed continuously. Toby adjusted something and he began jerking against some new torment. Razor closed his eyes for a moment and sighed heavily. He didn't enjoy this aspect of the job, but he also knew it had to be done.

Razor motioned for Toby to turn it off as Daft began dry heaving. He gave the man a few minutes to collect himself. Razor picked up a tablet and tapped on it. He brought up the statements that his Dogs had collected from the kidnapped Officers. They had also taken and run blood samples from each of the men.

"Let's ask something simpler, get you talking. How did you ambush the Officers, how did you catch them in the first place?"

"They came to us." Daft whispered.

"They say you drugged them at a bar." Razor read. "All six have the exact same story. Their blood also shows traces levels of an old fashioned drug called Ruphenol. We found a few empty bottles of it in your house, with your finger prints on it."

"I use it on girls." Daft admitted.

"I bet you do. What made you decide to use it on these boys?"

"I didn't."

"You need to come up with a better story because this one about six respectable Starfleet Officers knocking on your door and asking to be held hostage is the stupidest fucking thing I've ever heard."

"I swear, I've told you the truth...please, you have to believe me."

"Believe you? These men have years of service, they are decorated and respected, one is in line to become First Officer. You on the other hand are a low life waste of human flesh. I think I'll take their word over yours." Razor said coldly. "One last chance: who told you to take these men?"

"They came to u..."

"Toby, clearly these little disks aren't enough." Razor interrupted. "You got anything stronger?"

"You know I do."

"No!" Daft cried in panic. "No! Please! It's the truth!"

Toby already had another small case in his hand and he opened it to reveal two more disks that were a little more complicated looking than the ones Daft already wore. Razor snaked his hands into Daft's sweat drenched hair and held him still while Toby attached one disk into each of Daft's temples.

Their prisoner was now sobbing bitterly. Razor felt hot bile rising to the back of his throat, but he ignored it. He gave Daft another chance to tell him something that rang true and the prisoner launched into a detailed story about the Officers telling him that they were drug runners who had their last stash stolen by the Federation. Razor shook his head sadly and gave Toby the go ahead.

This time when Toby flicked the disk attached to Daft's stomach the two new disks lit up as well. Daft gasped so hard that it took him a moment to find his voice to scream. Razor averted his eyes from the sight as Daft's own eyes danced with a blue sparks. Razor knew that these particular devices gave the victim the sensation of intense heat and pressure inside the eyes. Despite the fact that no damage was being done as far as Daft was concerned his eyes were boiling from the inside.

Combined with the disks embedded in his chest it was more torment than any man could handle. Either they'd have the truth after this or the man simply wasn't one who could be broken. Daft cried at the top of his lungs as he arched back. It had been less than a minute since the devices had been switched on, but it was clear that Daft was already well beyond his threshold. Razor was about to tell Toby to stop when Daft found his voice.

"Diamond! Diamond! Dia..."

Daft's cries of 'diamond' ended as he passed out. Toby quickly turned off the disks. Razor stared at the unconscious man with a concerned expression knit into his brow.

"Sorry about that, Razor, he shouldn't have passed out for at least another five minutes."

"What do you think he meant by 'diamond'?" Razor asked. "He couldn't know about us, that makes even less sense than Starfleet Officers paying to be held captive."

"You know what's creepy about that...it's the safe word I gave Salen."

"What?"

"When Salen came and asked me to help him with his fear of knives. I told him to say 'diamond' when he'd had enough. I didn't really want to torture him, giving him a safe word meant he still had at least a little control."

"And you're sure that word was 'diamond'?"

"I'll never forget it."

Razor's heart suddenly pounded against his ribs as his blood turned to ice. Turning on his heels Razor raced out of the chamber and sprinted down the hall. He could hear Toby calling after him, but he didn't have time to explain. Razor made it down to the brig in record time and slammed his palm against the contact that would release the bars.

"Salen? Salen!"

Sitting on the floor with his back against the far corner and his head resting on his chest Salen was unresponsive. Razor dropped to his knees in front of Salen. He slipped his hand under Salen's chin and brought his face up. With his eyes closed Salen was as limp as a rag doll. Razor pried one of his eyes open and found that it was rolled back to white. He looked dead. Razor pressed his ear against Salen's rib and could barely hear a heartbeat.

"Come on, Salen, wake up. I'm sorry, please, wake up."

Despite Razor's plea Salen remained locked in his near death state. Razor gathered Salen up in his arms and got to his feet. Salen was barely breathing and it suddenly struck Razor that his friend was far more than merely unconscious.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven

"Damn it, Salen...I can't even leave you locked up alone for a few hours without you managing to somehow get into trouble."

Razor carefully laid Salen down on one of the biobeds. He looked up at the readings as the biobed sprang to life, but he didn't understand any of them. Razor had called for Toby to meet him in the infirmary, but he wasn't here yet. Salen looked dangerously peaceful. Razor ran his hand over Salen's alabaster hair to smooth it out.

"I'm sorry...I'm so sorry." Razor whispered. "Salen, if you don't wake up Joanna is going to kill me."

Salen jerked slightly at the sound of his wife's name, giving Razor some hope. He repeated Joanna's name several time in hopes of getting a reaction again. Under his eyelids Salen's eyes shifted back and forth, but that was as close as he came to waking up. Razor looked over his shoulder as Toby finally arrived.

"Razor, what's going on?"

"Something's wrong with Salen, he won't wake up."

"What happened?"

"I don't know." Razor looked back down at Salen. "Okay, that's not entirely true. I...I locked him in the brig."

"Does this have something to do with him breaking into my chamber?"

"Yes. He wanted to do a mind meld with our friend Daft."

"He didn't, did he?" Toby asked concerned.

"No. I was waiting for him, I knew he was going to try."

"And you threw him in the brig for defying orders." Toby concluded.

"What else was I supposed to do?" Razor snarled and then raked his hands though his hair in frustration. "I shouldn't have done it, I was wrong...he was so freaked out, I shouldn't have left him alone."

"Razor, stop, you were just being a leader. Let me look over his readings and see if I can figure out what is going on."

"What should I do?"

"Get into the computer and bring up Dr. McCoy's files on Vulcan disorders."

"Right."

Relieved to have something to do Razor went to the near by console and started bringing up the large collection of writings that Dr. McCoy had done in his years of treating Spock. Even though he didn't really know what he was looking for he started combing through the papers. Half an hour later he hadn't found anything that sounded like what was happening to Salen.

"Razor..." Toby called quietly.

"What have you found?" Razor asked anxiously as he returned to Salen's side. "Is he going to be okay?"

"Salen is near death, but he's not dying."

"What the hell does that mean?" Razor demanded.

"I can't really explain it. His entire metabolism has come to nearly a stand still. His heart is pushing just enough blood to keep him alive, his breathing rate has slowed to match it, brain activity is below the level of a coma...and yet he's perfectly healthy."

"Perfectly healthy?" Razor repeated. He reached out and lifted up Salen's arm and let it fall back to the biobed. "Does that look healthy to you?"

"What I'm trying to say is that his condition is not deteriorating, his body is running on low, but it's still running."

"How do we turn him back on to 'high'...or at least 'medium'?"

"I don't know."

"Well figure it out." Razor snapped.

Rather than getting angry or taking Razor's attitude personally Toby went over to the computer and started researching. Razor was grateful for the doctor's understanding. He turned his attention back to Salen. Locked in his deep sleep Salen's chest rose terrifyingly slowly. Razor closed his eyes against the sting of tears at the thought that he may have murdered his friend.

"Have I mentioned yet that I'm sorry?" Razor asked Salen in a barely audible whisper.

"Razor, did you know that Salen has a sealed medical file?"

"Yeah," Razor huffed "when they put that damned device in his ear."

"No, this is much older than that. I can see the date on it, Salen would have been like sixteen."

"Really? Can you open it?"

"No, but you can."

"Right."

Razor came over and typed his code into the computer and the file opened for Toby. He already had an idea of what was in the file. It was most likely the report written by the Starfleet medical crew right after the teenage Vulcan had been rescued. The quiet noise of horror that Toby made confirmed Razor's suspicions. Razor traced the scars on Salen's face as Toby continued to read.

"Razor...how much do you know about Salen's past?"

"I know enough."

"This is horrifying, I can't believe he survived."

"You can't keep a good Dog down."

"This is odd..." Toby mused.

"What is it?"

"Salen's brain."

"That is an odd thing." Razor agreed as he rolled his eyes.

"No, really, take a look at this."

Razor hesitated to leave Salen's side, but he eventually went over to the screen that Toby was staring at. There were two brain scans up on the screen, highlighted in false color. Razor studied the two three dimensional images as Toby rotated them around. As far as he could tell there was no difference.

"Should I be noticing something?"

"The one on the right is Salen's scan, the one on the left is a typical Vulcan."

"Typical?"

"It is an unnamed Vulcan that allowed Starfleet to scan him so that they'd have a reference for their database."

"When you say the other one is 'typical', are you implying that Salen's isn't?"

"There are anomalies. What corresponds to a human amygdala is slightly over sized, this central area here should have two distinct ventricles but his are connected, and there is an area near the central cortex that is slightly different in gyrus shape."

"What does any of that mean?"

"Well, according to the report no one really knows. It may mean nothing, the anomalies are very small. There is a debate in here if Salen acquired these differences through the trauma of his captivity or if he was born with them."

"Does it matter?"

"From a medical stand point it's fascinating."

"Toby, the only thing I care about right now is how to wake him up. Unless this brain scan can get him up and talking then I don't care about it."

"I don't think so. In fact this isn't very helpful at all, other than the scan this just catalogues his severe dehydration, malnutrition, cuts, withdrawn beha..."

"Toby!" Razor snapped. "Just help him!"

"Sorry."

Toby went back to combing through the records of Dr. McCoy. Razor went back over to Salen and started to pace. Salen still laid nearly motionless with the exception of the gentle rise and fall of his chest. Razor put his hand on Salen's chest and silently begged him to wake up. It seemed like forever before Toby joined him by Salen's side.

"Well?" Razor asked.

"Okay, I think I found something in Dr. McCoy's files. I don't think Salen is sick, I think he's stuck in a deep Vulcan meditation."

"Meditation? You mean he did this to himself?"

"I think it started that way. McCoy mentions two occasions when Spock slipped into such a deep meditation that he appeared near death. Once he came out of it himself, the other time he was injured and needed external stimulation to rouse."

"So there is something we can do?"

"In Spock's case they gave him a few hard slaps to the face."

"You want me to hit Salen?" Razor asked.

"It worked for Spock, something about the pain helping him snap out of it."

"I'll try anything, sit him up and we'll give it a go."

Razor helped Toby get Salen in a sitting position. Being completely relaxed it wasn't easy. Once they got him up Razor brought his hand back to strike him. He hesitated to actually lash out at the unconscious Vulcan. Toby encourage him and he back handed Salen hard across the cheek. Salen's eyes fluttered open for a moment before closing and his brow furrowed, but according to the biobed his heart rate was still dangerously low.

"Again." Toby instructed.

"He's going to wake up and kill me." Razor said only half jokingly.

"Do you want me to get a hypo to bring him down if he's violent?"

"No, I deserve anything he does to me."

Resigned to his fate Razor struck Salen again. This time Salen groaned and tried to get away from Toby. Knowing Salen was close to the surface Razor hit him again. This time Salen jolted awake and automatically struck out at Razor. Salen hit Razor in the jaw hard enough to make him stumble back. Salen ripped himself out of Toby's grasp and looked around wildly as he panted for breath.

"Easy, Salen, easy." Razor said with his hands held up in a sign of peace.

"Razor...what is going on?"

"I don't know, you tell me. Do you feel okay?"

"I am fine." Salen looked over his shoulder at Toby nervously.

"Toby," Razor said "you can go now."

Toby nodded and left. Salen reached up and rubbed his sore cheek where Razor had hit him. Looking around the infirmary Salen seemed to be trying to figure out what was real and what had been a dream. Razor waited for Salen to say something.

"What time is it?" Salen asked.

"About five am."

"Take me back down to the brig."

"What?"

"I need to stay there through the whole night, maybe the rest of tomorrow. I will not attempt the mediation again, clearly I do not have the proper training to control it."

"Let me get this straight...you want me to lock you up again? Are you insane?"

"I was so terrified when you left me that I attempted to escape the only way I knew how...through the deep meditation. I have read about the Vulcan ability to slip into a near death state. I should not have done so for the first time while I was in such an emotional state without a Vulcan guide to help me."

"If you were so terrified, why do you want to go back?"

"I want to over come this fear, I need to." Salen explained. "What if I am captured? I need to be able to control myself."

"Just don't get captured. Think of this as extra motivation to keep out of enemy hands."

"That might not always be an option."

Salen looked around the infirmary again, absent mindedly rubbing at his wrists. Razor watched him nervously, expecting them to get into an argument over Daft at any minute. He was terrified that Salen had been somehow mentally connected to the man while they had been mercilessly torturing him. However if Salen had just suffered a nightmare of pain he wasn't showing any signs of it.

"Salen..." Razor hesitated "do you recall anything from when you were meditating?"

"No." Salen shook his head. "The last thing I remember is sitting down in the corner and putting myself in a trance."

"No memories of pain or anything?"

"No. Why?"

"Our prisoner used your safe word, I was afraid that you were melding with him."

"Impossible, Vulcans are touch telepaths."

"Then how did he get that word?"

"I do not know." Salen shrugged. "I take it you have already tortured him?"

"Yeah, but we don't have the full story yet."

"I am sorry I went against your orders." Salen said suddenly. "I know you are right, that this is part of the job and that I do not have the skill to take the information. I do not know why I felt so strongly about this man and not wanting him hurt."

"That guy you killed was his brother, maybe part of him rubbed off on you."

"I certainly hope not."

"Why don't you go get some sleep?" Razor suggested.

Salen looked around and nodded although he didn't stand. The private communication panel across the room started to flash. Razor made sure that Salen was okay before going over to the panel.

"Razor, he's dead." Toby's voices came over the intercom.

"Who?"

"Daft."

"What? How?"

"Massive blood loss from a spontaneous nose bleed, it looks like it happened a few minutes ago. When I came down here he was already gone."

Startled by the news Razor looked over at Salen just in time to see him rub away a small amount of green blood from under his nose. Looking extremely tired Salen laid down on the biobed and settled in to the soft bed. Within a few seconds he was asleep. Razor furrowed his brow in concern.

"What if your problem isn't a lack of 'training'...what if you truly are different, what if you can't control yourself?"


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

Salen woke up without opening his eyes and stretched out his back. Finding himself warm and comfortable under a heap of covers he nestled in and thought about going back to sleep. After about five minutes he sighed and sat up. He knew he'd never hear the end of it from Razor if he slept in. Looking around his room he was a little confused at first. He recalled falling asleep in the infirmary.

"Razor must have moved me." Salen muttered to himself with a slight smile.

Still sitting on the soft bed Salen really didn't want to get up. He inched back until he could put his back against the wall. Leaning over he grabbed the communication tablet off the night stand. After typing his code into the device he hailed the Intrepid. He had expected to just be leaving a message for Joanna, but she answer and her smile seemed to brighten the small screen.

"Sugar!" Joanna cried happily. "I've missed you so much."

"I have missed you as well." Salen smiled. "How are you?"

"Things are pretty boring around here actually."

"Good." Salen replied.

"Good?"

"It means you are in as little danger as possible."

"You're so cute." Joanna giggled. "Speaking of danger, have you been on any missions yet?"

"I have."

"I know you can't tell me about them..."

"I can tell you that six Starfleet Officers will be able to return to their families."

"I am proud of you, I just wish I could be there."

"You do not mean that." Salen shook his head. "This is a ship of rowdy wolves. Just their utter lack of table manners would drive you crazy."

"That reminds me, how is Razor doing as Top Dog?"

"I am not certain that he is used to it yet." Salen admitted. "I believe he wishes Beckett was still in charge."

"Beckett was a yellow bellied snake in the grass!" Joanna hissed. "I never liked him."

"You are only saying that because he almost got me killed."

"I'm saying that because he left you to die."

"He was the one who saved me in the end."

"No." Joanna shook her head stubbornly. "It was Razor who fought for you."

"It does not matter now. I can not speak with you long and I would rather use the time to tell you how much I love and miss you."

"Oh, well, in that case," Joanna smiled mischievously "don't let me stop you. How much do you love me?"

"More than the stars."

"I'll accept that." Joanna teased. "How much do you miss me?"

"As I would my own heartbeat."

"My silver tongued Vulcan." Joanna sighed happily. "I wish I was there."

"I will see you in a few short months."

Joanna and Salen exchanged good-bye and the screen went dark. Salen rethought his decision to not allow Joanna to serve as the doctor on board for a moment. However he knew that having her aboard was selfish and that she was far safer where she was. Finally getting out of bed Salen pulled on a ship board uniform and when on the hunt for Razor.

It took a while to find Razor, he was in the main computer room. Salen stepped up silently behind him as he stared at the screen. There were six pictures floating on the translucent screen, all of them of the same tattoo, but they looked to be on different people. Razor tapped his fingers on the console in obvious frustration.

"Thinking about getting some new ink?" Salen asked.

"Yaaah!" Razor exclaimed as he jumped out of his seat. "Damn it Salen! I'm going to get you a bell that you'll have to wear while you're sneaking around on the ship."

"That is a threat I have heard before."

"I swear, the next planet we come to that sells bells I'm getting you one." Razor mutter. "Nearly gave me a heart attack."

"You should not be so easy to sneak up on."

"Yeah, well, I was concentrating."

"On what?"

"I have been trying to figure out the six men we rescued. So far the only minor points of interest is that they all grew up on Ioa 7, they serve on the same ship, and they all have the same tattoo."

"What do you suppose that means?"

"It is not uncommon for kids who grew up together to enter the Academy together and end up serving on the same Starship." Razor shrugged.

"What about the tattoos."

"That's a little harder. I could mean a few things. They could have gotten them done before the Academy, as a graduation celebration, as part of a loyalty thing, during a drunken shore leave, or something more sinister."

"Sinister?" Salen repeated. "Like a gang tattoo?"

"That doesn't sound likely, does it?"

"Not at all."

Salen took a closer look at the images. Members of Starfleet with tattoos had them scanned and entered into the database in case they were ever needed for quick visual identification of a body. Salen furrowed his brow as he studied the simple ink design. It was a stylized line drawing of a mountain with two peaks with a sun rising behind them, the mountain lines and those of the sun met forming a nearly circular design. At least that was what Salen saw, it was hard to know since it was just a few lines.

"Not exactly what I think of when I think of a gang or cult tattoo." Razor sighed.

"What makes you think that there is anything behind the tattoo?"

"Just a hunch."

"I have found that in humans a 'hunch' usually translates into an 'over active imagination', attempts at reason in the absence of it."

"I have my reasons." Razor growled.

"Something the prisoner told you no doubt."

"Maybe."

"Am I to understand that you are not going to share any of that information with me?" Salen asked calmly.

"What do you think he said?"

"I have no way of knowing. I assume it was either something along the lines of a confession to kidnapping or a repetitive denial of the crime."

"More along the lines of the second one." Razor admitted. "He said that the Starfleet Officers claimed that they were drug runners and paid him to hide in his basement and that they must have called in the ransom themselves."

"That...does not make any sense."

"I know!" Razor exclaimed in frustration. "It is so absurd that I'm almost forced to believe that it is true. But why would the Officers do something like that?"

"They would not." Salen answered simply.

"Exactly. So it must be a lie. But if this scum bag decided to lie to us why didn't he think of something better? Something more plausible."

"Perhaps he is just a terrible liar."

"That is another thing that is bothering me." Razor said. "He either had no training and was telling the truth, or had amazing training and was telling a lie. He sounded extremely convincing and he never changed his story despite the pa..."

Razor stopped suddenly and looked at Salen uneasily.

"It is okay, Razor, I know you were torturing him. You do not have to try and hide it."

"I know...I guess...I don't know."

"Razor, what is wrong?"

Razor sighed heavily and dragged his hands through his hair. Salen was concerned about the amount of stress that his partner seemed to be under. As far as Salen knew the mission was basically over, he didn't understand why Razor was looking so deeply into the lives of the victims trying to some how twist them into criminals. Salen knew that even Starfleet Officers sometimes ended up corrupt, but faking a hostage situation didn't seem to have any logical gain.

Meanwhile Razor was looking more and more guilty by the second. Salen had seen this in him before, it was the look he got when he had a secret that he'd rather not keep. Salen crossed his arms over his chest and waited patiently. Razor tried to keep quiet, but quickly broke down.

"Okay, fine." Razor huffed. "I think you killed Daft."

"Daft? I do not even know who that is."

"He was the prisoner."

"He is dead?"

"I wouldn't be standing here saying I think you killed him if he was alive." Razor pointed out.

"Logical. When exactly do you think I had the time to break back into Toby's chamber and kill him?"

"I think you did it from the infirmary."

"How?"

"I don't know, you tell me, you're the alien here!"

"Since neither of us are on our homeworlds we are both technically 'aliens' right now."

"You know what I mean." Razor growled.

"No, no I do not know what you mean. I do not understand any of this. I was unconscious in the infirmary and then I was talking to you before going back to sleep. I don't see how murder fits into any of that."

"Daft died of massive nose bleed."

"I still do not see the connection."

"You had blood dripping from your nose."

"I had a drop of blood."

"Yes, but why?"

"I do not know, perhaps it had something to do with the fact that you had been striking me with the back of your hand to wake me up!"

"Oh...right." Razor said sheepishly. "I...uh...I kinda forgot about that part."

"Clearly." Salen snarled.

"Salen, I'm sorry, I just..."

"You do not trust me."

"It isn't you I don't trust, it's what you can do. Salen, I think for everyone's safety, including your own, you should go to Natala and get some training."

Salen took a breath to argue, but kept his thoughts to himself. Razor looked like he was standing on pins and needles as he waited for Salen's response. Salen sighed and relaxed his confrontational body language.

"Salen?"

"I already tried." Salen admitted quietly.

"Already tried what?"

"I talked to the Vulcan High Council before returing to the Diamond about receiving training and they said no."

"What? Why?"

"They say I am too old."

"You're not even thirty. They won't even give you a chance?"

"No." Salen shook his head sadly. "It is not logical for them to waste their efforts on me."

"That's bull shit!" Razor spat. "What about Spock? Maybe he can help you?"

"He has done enough for me. Spock does not have the time to take me as a student right now."

"Salen..."

"If you do not believe that I am fit to serve aboard the Black Diamond then I will apply for a transfer."

"Don't you dare." Razor replied quickly. "I'm just being an idiot. If you say you had nothing to do with the prisoner's death and that you weren't connected to him during your 'meditation', then I believe you."

"I was not. There are rules of physics to be obeyed."

"Toby admitted that it could have been an aneurysm rupture from the stress. I want you as my First Officer, I just need you to promise me that you'll follow my orders and not attempt any more of these Vulcan mind tricks."

"I will and I will not respectively."

Razor had to think about Salen's answer for a moment to make sure he understood it. Salen chuckled to show that he had used the complicated wording on purpose. Razor narrowed his eyes and pounced on Salen quickly putting him in a headlock. Salen protested with a shout of laughter as Razor roughly gave him what he had previously referred to as a 'nuggie'. Salen managed to escape but his hair was now a hopeless mess.

"I will never understand human bonding rituals."

"And I will never understand anything that Vulcans do."

"I do not understand most of it myself." Salen smiled. "Where do we go from here?"

"What do you mean?"

"The Starfleet Officer's tattoos, the strange confession from the prisoner, the lack of any sense to this whole case, what are we going to do about it?"

"We're going to drop it. I'm going to write up the report, send it in, and wash my hands of it. I'm going to take the word of six high standing Officers over the delusional lies of some dead scum bag. The hostages are free, the bad guys are dead, the mission is over, the case is closed."

"Sounds...somewhat logical."

"It's as logical as it's going to get around here." Razor shrugged. "Hey, lets head down to the gym, I think an old fashioned sparing match will get all this conspiracy stuff out of my head, and you can get a chance to get some revenge on me for accusing you of murdering people with your mind."

"I am a little miffed about that."

"Then lets go settle the score like men and then forget it ever happened."

"Deal."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Joanna sat at her desk staring at a medical chart although he mind was not on her work. It had been over a week since she had heard from Salen. She knew that at times months would probably pass between him being able to contact her, but today he was on her mind. After a quick look around to make sure she had Sick Bay to herself Joanna brought up Salen's medical chart.

The small picture attached to the chart always made Joanna's heart skip a beat. The photo had been taken back when Salen had just entered the Academy. His expression was haunting. He was staring out of the photo as though trying to gauge the intentions of the viewer, ready to run if he had to. Salen had that same expression when she'd first met him, but these days he no longer had that edge of fear in his eyes. The Dogs had brought him a new confidence. Joanna reached out and traced the scars on Salen's face.

"I miss you, Honey-bear."

"Dr. Pike?"

Joanna jumped at the sound of her new title. She quickly closed the medical file and turned around. One of the young Security Officers had come into Sick Bay with his hand pressed against his stomach. She quickly determined that he had a stomach virus and gave him the proper medication before sending him to his quarters for a few days of rest.

By the time she was done with the Officer it was the end of Joanna's shift. Rather than go down to the commons for dinner she grab some food to go and retreated to her own room. She checked the communication tablet that the Dogs had given her to keep in touch with Salen. She was hoping to find a message from Salen, but the tablet had nothing to say.

"I hope you're safe." Joanna whispered.

Joanna didn't know why she was nervous tonight, but there was something that was making her feel that something was wrong. She picked at her dinner before giving up on eating and slipping into the shower. Once out of the shower she opened her medicine cabinet and pulled out a bottle of pills. She tried not to use the anti-anxiety medication as much as she could, but some nights she knew she'd never sleep without them.

Downing two of the pills she crawled into bed. The medication worked fast and Joanna easily fell asleep. Hours later Joanna was jerked out of her dreamless sleep by a yellow alert blaring through the ship. Jumping out of bed Joanna pulled on her uniform dress and rushed to Sick Bay. It was the middle of the night, but being on a Starship someone was always on duty at the helm.

"Attention all hands," the Captain's voice came over the PA system "five minutes ago we received a distress call from a transport ship that is apparently dead in the water. The transport is not a registered Federation ship, but the crew reports that they are human. We are approaching the ship's location. Extreme caution is to be use, we will assume they may be hostile until proven other wise. Infirmary, be prepared to receive injured personnel from the transport."

The announcement was just ending when Joanna's head nurse stepped into the small infirmary. She raised a disapproving eyebrow at him. He flushed and flashed her a guilty smile.

"You're late, Stevens." Joanna said.

"Sorry, Dr. Pike."

"Your response time needs to improve, if this had been a medical emergency minuets lost can be lives lost."

"Yes, Doctor."

"Get everything set for an influx of patients, there is no telling what shape these men are in."

Stevens got busy in the main infirmary getting everything ready. Fearing that they were going to need every available bed Joanna went into the isolation room to prepare it for a patient. Joanna was still in the isolation room when all hell broke loose. A man burst into the infirmary just as the red alert siren began to wail.

Joanna jolted and rushed over to the isolation room door. She peered out and saw that the stranger was armed with a phaser and had it aimed at Stevens. A nervous young man to begin with Stevens was shaking in fear with his hands held up in the air. The invader looked him over.

"Are you the doctor?" He demanded.

"N...yes. Yes I am."

"Is anyone else in here?"

"N...n...no." Stevens lied.

Joanna remained hidden while the man grabbed Stevens by the upper arm and dragged him out of the infirmary. Over head the alarm were suddenly silenced. The Intrepid was a small Starship and far more suited to research or search and rescue than actual combat. The Intrepid wasn't defenseless, but it looked as though some trap had been sprung. Joanna was trying to think of what to do next when another large man followed by three others entered the infirmary. Joanna ducked back a little further to avoid being seen.

"Strip this place," the apparent leader barked "I want everything of use."

"What about the beds themselves, Malic?"

"Everything." Malic repeated.

The men got busy tearing apart the Sick Bay. They collected all the drugs and medical instruments and started making trips, probably to the transporter room. Joanna's heart was pounding against her ribs as she watched the thieves. She gasped as Malic started to make his way towards the isolation room.

There wasn't really anywhere to hide. Joanna took her only option and cowered down behind the far side of the biobed. She tried to make herself as small as possible as the invader entered the room. Malic instantly went to the cabinets and started riffling through them for anything worth steal. Joanna was in plain sight if he would just turn around.

Holding her breath she thought that he might miss her until he casually looked over his shoulder. Malic turned around slowly and stared down at her. For a moment neither one of them moved, but then a cruel smile spread across his face.

"Hello there." Malic chuckled. "Aren't you a pretty thing."

"Please, just take what you want and go."

"I plan to."

Joanna cried out as Malic lunged at her. With her back to the wall she had no where to run and Malic easily grabbed a hold of her hair. Joanna grabbed her attacker's wrist to take some of the pressure off her hair, but she couldn't escape his grip. Malic shoved Joanna forward and slammed her into the biobed. Knocked breathless Joanna struggled for breath as Malic put his hand on the back of her neck and forced her to bend forward. With her stomach against the biobed he pressed her face into the soft bed.

Joanna's tears began to stain the biobed as she realized why Malic had placed her in the vulnerable position. With one hand still on the back of her neck Malic ran his free hand down her side and onto her thigh. Joanna fought to keep her legs together. Malic laughed as he easily forced them apart with his knee and began to push up her uniform dress.

"Malic!" An angry voice snarled. "What are you doing?"

"Fuck off, Bryce."

"Let her go, you were given explicit instructions that no one was to be killed during this."

"I'm not going to kill her." Malic leered.

"Help me, please!" Joanna begged.

"I'm not going to let you rape her." Bryce said firmly. "Just bring her down to the lower levels with the others."

Joanna held still, hoping that this new man had control over Malic. When his hand lifted off her thigh she started to breath a sigh of relief. Her relief was short lived when Malic grabbed his phaser and shot Bryce in the chest. Renewing her fight for freedom Joanna screamed out for help as Malic tormented her by pressing against her. He was far too powerful for her to break free from.

"Hold still or I'll break your shoulder to make this easier for me." Malic hissed in Joanna's ear. "Cooperate with me and I'll let you live. Do you understand?"

"Yes." Joanna whispered.

"You don't sound very respectful."

"Yes, Sir." Joanna corrected.

"That's better."

Malic holstered his phaser once more so that he could undo his pants. Joanna gripped the mattress of the biobed and weld her eyes shut. She couldn't stop the tears that spilled from from her eyes, but she managed to take a deep breath and forced herself to relax as best she could. All she wanted right now was to get this over with and survive the ordeal.

"I'm going to make you moan." Malic chuckled. "You're going to c..."

Malic stopped suddenly as there was the distinctive crack of a phaser. Joanna felt like an enormous weight had suddenly been lifted off her and she realized that Malic had just fallen to the floor. Pushing herself away from the biobed she nearly tripped over backwards on his corpse. With adrenaline still rushing through her veins Joanna pressed herself into the far corner.

"Joanna, are you okay?"

"Mich...Michaels?"

"Yes, it's me. Come on we have to get out of here."

Joanna slowly opened her eyes and looked over at Michaels, the man Salen had once attacked in a jealous insanity. He was holding his hand out to her, but she was having trouble reaching out and taking it. Narrowly escaping a violent rape Joanna was shaking uncontrollably. Michaels smiled sadly and went to put his hand down, realizing that she was terrified.

"I don't want to rush you Joanna, but the ship has been over run."

"Okay, where are we going to go?"

"Right now I think I think most of the free crew is down in Engineering."

Joanna nodded and after one last moment of hesitation she stepped over the dead Malic and then over the body of Bryce. This time she reached out and took Micheals' hand even though he hadn't offered it again. He nodded and started to lead her through the ship towards Engineering. Along the way Joanna asked him what had happened, but he wasn't sure.

"All I really know is that they are striping the ship for parts. If they are planing on building a ship of their own they better make sure they never take it anywhere near Federation territory. All this stuff is tagged with the ship's signature."

"Why not just take the whole ship?"

"Good question. I have no id..."

A powerful explosion rocked the ship and threw the pair to the hallway floor. Michaels got to his feet first and was about to help Joanna up when another blast tore through the ship. A large chunk of the ceiling came crashing down on them. Michael's tried to shield Joanna from the debris but she was still knocked senseless.

Joanna woke in pain and moaned as she tried to move. She was pinned down under a large piece of the metal ceiling that had her leg trapped. Still dazed Joanna tried to figure out her surroundings. The first thing she noticed was that she was laying in a warm wet puddle. Instantly knowing that it was blood Joanna tried to look around.

Unable to sit up because of the metal on top of her Joanna wasn't able to get a good view around. However she could feel Michaels' hot breath brushing against her neck. He was laying on his side next to her. His labored breathing told her that the blood loss was his.

"Michaels?"

"I'm sorry." Michaels whispered.

"Just stay with me, stay awake."

The breath against her neck started to grow weaker until it suddenly stopped. Joanna called for Michaels several times, but she knew he was dead. Joanna started to struggle for freedom. Every time she moved pain lanced up her pinned leg. She continued to fight until she realized that she wasn't going to be able to free herself.

Joanna had no choice but to wait for rescue that may never come. There were more explosions in the distance and shouting along with sounds that she couldn't identify. After several hours the pool of blood around her had cooled and congealed. The pain she was in and the events she had been through caused Joanna to start drifting in and out of consciousness. Eventually everything on the ship was still and silent. Joanna fluttered her eyes open, but the ship had fallen dark.

"Salen...Salen..."


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

"I need to get control of myself."

Salen sighed heavily and wrapped his arms tighter around his sour stomach. He knew this particular pain, it was the stress of anxiety. It didn't just turn his stomach, it prickled his skin and made his blood feel like ice in his veins. These kind of panic attacks were part of everyday life when he was still caged up in Wilson's basement, however it had been years since he'd had one this severe.

It was the middle of the night, but Salen couldn't sleep. He couldn't even hold still. He had been pacing back and forth for an hour. He was shivering with a bone cutting chill that nothing could seem to fix. Having already taken several showers he knew that running through the hot water again wasn't going to make him feel any better the way it usually did. When he started having difficulty breathing he decided it was time to go for a walk.

Already in a casual uniform Salen stalked the hallways until he came to the observation deck. The floor to ceiling windows gave him a view of the vastness of space which always helped him feel a little less confined. Tonight however looking out into the stars just make him feel sicker as the sourceless fear continued to gnaw at him.

"Stop this!" Salen hissed at himself. "Control your emotions or they will control you."

Salen repeated the advice given to him by Spock, not realizing that Spock had heard that same lecture from his father many times before. He took a deep breath and leaned his shoulder against the thick glass. Despite being insulated the glass was cold from the icy darkness of the void just beyond and he began to shiver. With his arms still around his stomach he closed his eyes for a moment.

"Not you too." Razor sighed as he stepped into the room wearing a sweater.

"Razor? Are you okay? You do not look very well."

"Neither do you, neither does more than half this ship." Razor growled as he pressed his hand against his stomach. "We must have managed to pick up a stomach virus on our last mission. As a Vulcan I'd hoped you'd be immune to it."

"I do not have a stomach virus."

"You could have fooled me, you look like hell."

"I...I am having a panic attack." Salen admitted.

"Damn it, Salen, you're not giving it to the rest of us are you?" Razor demanded.

"I do not know. Maybe. Step closer, see if it affects you more."

Razor cocked his head to the side and eyed Salen warily: not in a 'I'm afraid of you' kind of way, but in a 'I think you're nuts' kind of way. Salen waited for a moment and when Razor didn't step closer he raised an eye brow at him. Razor rolled his eyes and took a purposefully step closer. Salen held his breath as he waited for a reaction.

"I feel fine, Salen."

"Really?"

"No, I feel like shit...but I haven't felt good for the past two or three hours."

"But you do not feel any worse when you come closer?"

"No."

"Touch me." Salen held his hand out.

"What is it with you and the 'touching' lately?"

"Please, Razor, just try."

"The things I do for you." Razor sighed.

Salen kept his hand out and Razor came closer. Under the best of circumstances Salen didn't like his hands being touched but he felt this was the best way to determine if there was any transference. Razor forced a smile as he closed in and took Salen's hand. Salen was surprised when Razor gasped violently and jerked away. Razor doubled over and dry heaved a few times. Salen tried to help but Razor reared back to get away from him.

"Damn it, Salen!" Razor roared. "You are making us sick!"

"Razor, I am sorry...I do not even know how I am doing it."

"Salen, what am I going to do with you?" Razor sighed as he calmed.

"I do not know." Salen backed away until he bumped into the glass. "The Vulcans will not help me, Spock will not help me, I have no one to turn to."

"You have me."

Salen looked up at Razor and smiled sadly. Razor tried to step closer but the look on Salen's face made him keep his distance. Not knowing what to do Salen started pacing back and forth. Razor watched helplessly, feeling like he was going to be sick again. Eventually Salen stopped and banged his head softly against the glass.

"Take it easy, Salen. We'll find a way to fix this."

"How?"

"We can start with talking about this whole panic thing. What are you panicking about?"

"Nothing."

"It can't be nothing."

"Honestly, Razor, I do not know why I feel like this. I just woke up in a panic."

"What were you dreaming about?"

"Darkness, cold, the feeling of being...trapped." Salen shrugged. "Nothing new. Except..."

"Except what?"

"I woke up cold and worried about Joanna."

"Maybe we should check on her."

"Do not be ridiculous." Salen shook his head. "She is fine, the Intrepid is safe, it is just a research vessel."

"Technically the Enterprise is a 'research vessel', they get into trouble all the time." Razor pointed out.

"I am not waking Joanna up in the middle of the night because of my silly dreams, she will kill me."

"We won't wake her up, we'll just make a quick call to the Captain pretending to be Starfleet looking for an update."

"That is insane."

"So are you. I'm doing it."

"Razor..."

"I want you to feel better so I get my crew out of Sick Bay and back to bed."

"I must admit that it would make me feel better."

"I thought so." Razor chuckled.

Even though his stomach was still twisting Salen chuckled as well. They both headed off to the bridge. Unlike other ships the Diamond was often just left on auto pilot since it had a full array of automatic sensors and collision avoiders that Starfleet just couldn't afford to put on every Starship. Razor sat down at the communications panel and put on a cheesy smile.

"What is wrong with you?" Salen asked.

"I have to get into character to make a call as Starfleet."

"Razor, they will not be able to see you."

"That's not the point. Now hush." Razor tapped on the panel.

"You are crazy."

"Intrepid," Razor said in a gravely voice "this is Starfleet Command."

Silence.

"Intrepid, this is Starfleet Command, please respond." Razor repeated.

Static.

"Why are they not answering?"

"Intrepid," Razor said in his voice that he reserved for orders "Intrepid, this is Starfleet Command, respond."

"Razor, what is going on?"

"I don't know." Razor tapped on the screen again. "Base, this is Diamond, emergency, respond."

"Razor," Salen said worried "what are you thinking?"

"I just want to know where the Intrepid is, maybe she is out of our range."

"They dropped me off just over a week ago, both our ships would have to have been traveling at maximum warp in opposite directions the whole time to be out of subspace range."

"I know that..." Razor admitted. "I'm calling because...because..."

"Because you think something is wrong."

"Diamond, this is Base, what is the nature of your emergency?" A male voice requested.

"When and where was the last communication between Starfleet and the Intrepid, or the Intrepid and anyone for that matter."

"Intrepid checked in on schedule two days ago, she's due to check in again tomorrow."

"Where is she now?"

"On a heading of 274.7 between Nevlin System and Yansu System, they should be 4.3 light years from Yansu."

"What was their Warp?"

"No Warp, on Impulse, researching a dust formation. Hang on...there is a communication here that hasn't been processed."

"Has not been processed? What does that mean?" Salen demanded.

"It means that someone over at Starfleet Command is asleep at the switch." Razor growled. "Eddie, what does it say?"

"The Intrepid sent message at 23:48 informing Starfleet that they had received a distress call from a near by transport vessel and that a report was to follow."

"That was nearly five hours ago." Salen said worried. "Have they reported since?"

"No, that was the last that was heard from them, but you know sometimes Captains get lazy and leave that sort of thing to the morning particularly if it's routine and uneventful."

"No...no...something is wrong." Salen said as he backed away.

"Salen?"

Salen turned around and rushed down the hallway at top speed. He could hear Razor calling after him, but he couldn't stop for him. The fear in his stomach had now spread up into his heart which was pounding in his chest. Salen tore into his room and grabbed his communication tablet off his nightstand. He tapped his code into the tablet and it began to ring, a few rings later the screen lit up with a request that he leave a message. Salen clicked on 'yes' in hopes that she was just sleeping and he could wake her.

"Joanna, Joanna, please answer...Joanna!"

Razor finally caught up and stood in Salen's doorway looking worried. Salen tried calling Joanna again, but once more there was no answer. Salen looked up at Razor with a stricken look on his face.

"Razor, it was not a dream."

"Salen..."

"Joanna is in trouble, the Intrepid is in trouble..." 


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

"I should not have left her on the Intrepid."

"Where should you have left her? In a steel box in an underground shelter?"

"Razor..."

"Salen, it's a dangerous world no matter where or who you are. You can't blame yourself if something has happened."

"Something has happened."

"We'll be at the last known position for the Intrepid in thirty minutes. Why don't you just ..."

"Just what?" Salen snapped. "What should I do?"

"I was going to say 'relax', but clearly that isn't happening."

"My wife is dying."

"We don't know tha..."

"I do know it!" Salen roared.

As Salen's temper flared Razor weld his eyes shut and ground his teeth in an expression of pain. Razor reached up and pressed his hand against forehead as he began struggling for breath. Salen's own chest was heaving as he panted heavily against his own panic, but Razor looked as though he might actually pass out.

"Salen, please, calm down." Razor said softly. "Panicking now isn't going to help, in fact you've incapacitated half the crew..."

"I am sorry..." Salen backed away. "I...I can not help it."

"I can't have you on this ship if you are going to affect us like this. Now find a way to stop it, you never used to rub off on us like this and I know you've been plenty stressed before now."

"You are right." Salen admitted. "I will try."

Already in his field uniform Salen sat down on the floor of the bridge. From his place in the Captain's seat Razor watched Salen with concern. They were on their way at top speed toward the Intrepid, but most of the crew was still sick with Salen's worry. As a Vulcan he was naturally more immune to the emotions effects, but Razor was having trouble just keeping from choking on the panic Salen was pressing into him.

Closing his eyes Salen took several deep breaths and tried to center himself. He knew that there was nothing he could do to stop the fear in his own heart, but he was hoping he could break the connection with the others. Remembering the brief lesson in meditation that Spock had given him during their first meeting Salen focused all his energy on visualizing a small bright candle flame. For a while the flame danced and refused to be extinguished. Salen physically reached out and mimicked snuffing out the wild flame. As he did so he could hear Razor's sigh of relief. Salen looked up at Razor and forced a sad smile.

"Feel better?" Salen asked.

"Yes. How about you?"

"I do feel more in control, although I am still terrified."

"And only seeing Joanna safe is going to truly fix that. We'll be dropping out of Warp in five minutes." Razor pressed the contact on the intercom. "Flash, you feeling better?"

"I'm fine, and I'm on my way to the bridge."

"Good I want to be cloaked when we arrive."

"Yes, Sir."

Salen bowed his head in shame for what he had done, Flash had been unable to join them on the bridge without being overwhelmed by the transferred emotions. Razor was the only one who could handle the phenomenon well enough to stay close to his Vulcan friend. Now that Salen had worked on shutting the others out reports came in from Sick Bay that the 'stomach flu' seemed to be cured. Razor had only told Flash and the new doctor on board what was truly happening.

Flash arrived on the bridge and forced a nervous smile as he looked at Salen. Flash had only been able to stay on the bridge long enough to plot the course and get the ship moving before breaking down into tears. Razor had been forced to tell him that it wasn't a virus that was sweeping the ship, but he also made it an order that he keep his mouth shut about it.

"So I take it our resident alien has figured things out?" Flash said only half jokingly.

"We're all aliens out here." Razor growled darkly. "Don't worry about Salen, just get this ship to the Intrepid in one piece."

"Aye, Sir." Flash nodded. "Sorry, Dingo, I didn't mean anything by it."

"It is okay."

Salen kept his distance from the other two as they prepared to drop out of Warp. He turned his attention to the forward view screen. When the blue haze of Warp dropped away all three men gasped sharply. The Intrepid was adrift with one of her engines missing completely. There were no phaser marks to the hull of the ship, but it was clear to everyone that the damage inside the ship was extensive.

"We have to get over there." Salen started for the turbolift.

"Hold on, Salen." Razor ordered. "Flash, what are the conditions over there?"

"There are life signs, something's wrong with the life support. The oxygen is fine, but the heating system is crippled."

"How cold is it?"

"It varies, one of the lower levels is around fifty degrees, but other areas range from several hundred degrees to near zero. There must be fires and hull breaches."

"What about Sick Bay?" Salen asked anxiously.

"About thirty degrees."

"Razor, please..."

"Okay, let's go." Razor clicked on the intercom. "Rescue teams Alpha and Beta prepare to board the Intrepid, Flash will give you a briefing and assignments. Intrepid is cold and needs heating devices to keep the crew alive until a larger Federation ship can come and pick them up. Use standard cover story."

Razor gave Flash a few parting instructions to help him with the rest of the rescue while he and Salen went searching for Joanna. Salen was already waiting in the turbolift, pacing back and forth in the small confines. Razor joined him and they made their way down to the transporter room.

"What is the standard cover story?" Salen asked.

"Any time we have to board a Federation ship we masquerade as off duty high class Security Team for hire, Elite Security Inc, luckily we just happened by. It's not unusual for the extremely wealthy and powerful to have personal guards for space travel. We have business cards, I'll get you some."

"What if someone actually tries to hire you?"

"We're booked for the next ten years." Razor smiled.

Getting to the transporter room Razor had Cobalt beam then directly into the Sick Bay of the Intrepid. The cold was shocking, like being dropped into ice water. The lights were flickering as the injured ship tried her hardest to keep operational. Salen's first exhale formed a white cloud as his warm breath met with the icy air.

"Joanna!" Salen called out.

There was no response, the Sick Bay was empty. It wasn't just the people missing the whole room had been ransacked and stripped of all equipment. Razor had his phaser out and was looking around methodically. Salen noticed that the air had a foul metallic stench to it.

"Razor, I smell blood...lots of blood."

"Joanna's?"

"I can not tell."

Razor nodded and started a sweep of the area. Salen went directly to the isolation room, but he hesitated to look inside. His keen sense could smell the distinctive stench of blood and phaser burns and he feared what he'd find. Quickly finding the courage he stepped inside where he found the bodies of Malic and Bryce. From what he could see it looked as though the men had killed one another, but neither was wearing a uniform.

"Razor, in here."

"The smaller one looks like he could be Starfleet, the other one not so much. He looks like a common dirtbag." Razor noted.

"Neither belong on this ship." Salen said confidently.

"Flash," Razor called over his communicator "I've got two bodies here that I want in our morgue. Make sure the team collects digital evidence before moving the bodies."

"Aye, Sir."

"Razor, what happened here?"

"Some one decided to strip a Federation ship for parts...something they'll regret."

"We have to find Joanna."

"Flash," Razor called "where are most of the life signs coming from?"

"Alpha team is already there, down in the lower levels. If Joanna is there she hasn't come forward to any of the men."

"She knows the uniform, she would go to them looking for me."

Salen looked around the ruined Sick Bay one last time before rushing out into the hall. He wasn't sure where he was going, but there was no sense in hanging around the empty infirmary. Razor didn't question him and trotted along side him as their made their way through the ship. They were stopped by some wreckage from a fallen ceiling. Salen saw the pool of frozen blood, but it was the errant lock of brown curly hair coming out from from under the wreckage that caused his own blood to freeze.

"Joanna!" Salen cried as he knelt down and put his hands on the metal tangle. "Joanna!"

"We are going to need to get some equipment to move thi..."

Salen forced his fingers under the edge of the fallen ceiling and poured all of his strength into lifting it up. Razor stood back in shock as Salen roared with effort and managed to lift the impossibly heavy metal heap and moved it aside. Razor stared in disbelief at Salen's inhuman show of strength. Underneath the mess were two figures. Even without really looking at him Salen knew Michaels was dead. Salen dropped to his knees and pressed his hand against Joanna's pale throat.

"She's alive, but barely." Salen brushed her cheek to try and wake her. "Joanna, I am here, Joanna."

"We need to get her back to the Diamond, she must be hypothermic."

Salen nodded and ran his fingers through her hair before gently lifting her up. She was covered in blood, but it was impossible to tell what belong to her and what belonged to Michaels. Salen held her cold body against his chest to try and warm her up as Razor barked orders to have them all returned to the Diamond. She was completely limp and her lips were terrifyingly blue. Despite being cold she wasn't shivering.

"Hold on, Joanna." Salen whispered as he nuzzled her.

After the brief disorientation of being beamed Salen took a grateful breath of the relatively warm air of the Diamond. They were in the Sick Bay already and both Toby and the new Doc were ready, but Salen shook his head when they motioned for him to place her on the biobed. Toby came up with a medical tricorder and a look of concern.

"She's so cold," Salen protested "we need to get her into warm water."

"No," Toby shook his head "at this point warming her that quickly will cause metabolic acidosis and kill her."

"What do we do?" Salen asked desperately.

"I'm afraid at this level of hypothermia there is no 'sure fire' answer." The new Doc said in a cold clinical voice.

"If you're not going to help get out of my Sick Bay!" Razor snarled at the Doc.

"I am just pointing out the obvious." The new Doc replied evenly.

"Salen," Toby said "put Joanna down and take your uniform off."

Salen didn't question Toby's unusual orders and gently rested Joanna down on the biobed. Reaching up he slipped his thumb into the collar of his uniform to undo the closure that would only respond to his thumbprint. The front of Salen's skin tight uniform split open and with Razor's help he stripped it off in record time, revealing his heavily scarred skin. Down to a pair of black lycra type shorts Salen was instructed to crawl up onto the bio bed with Joanna. Toby threw a fluffy deep blue blanket over the pair.

"She's freezing," Salen fretted "barely breathing, I can hardly hear her heartbeat."

"At that temperature her entire system is shutting do..." The new Doc started.

"Stay calm, when it comes to hypothermia no one's dead until they are warm and dead." Toby assured. "You'd be amazed how well people can recover. Take her uniform off as well."

"I do not advise this course of action." The new Doc argued. "We should remove her blood, heat it, and replace it."

"She's already in shock, such an invasive procedure could kill her. She needs to be revived slowly and naturally."

"Standing by and letting 'nature' do the work is foolish."

"Salen," Razor said "it's your call what you want the doctors to try."

"You are not getting her out of my arms." Salen said firmly.

Under the thick blanket Salen gripped the front of Joanna's uniform dress and effortlessly tore it open. Instructed to remove all of her clothing and the rest of his own Salen complied. Wrapping his arms around Joanna Salen pressed his warm flesh against her icy skin. He shifted her so that he was on his back and she was laying with her belly against his.

Toby brought over another blanket and piled it on top of the couple. Razor brought over a few pillows and helped prop Salen up a little so that he could more easily cradle his wife. Salen put his chin over Joanna's head and closed his eyes. He hadn't even realized that tears had been slipping down his cheeks until now. The new doctor came over and ran the medical tricorder over Joanna.

"How is she?" Salen asked.

"Her leg is badly broken." The Doc announced. "Full break of both the fibula and tibia in three places with brusi..."

"Nothing that can't be fix," Toby interrupted "we'll deal with it later."

The new doctor flashed Toby an annoyed looked and put the tricorder down. Salen narrowed his eyes distrustfully at the new doctor and held Joanna tighter in his protective embrace. Razor didn't look to thrilled by the older man's bedside manner either.

Ignoring the others Salen turned his attention back to Joanna. She didn't look like she was sleeping peacefully, she looked like she was slipping away. Salen worked to tuck the blankets around them tighter as his body heat slowly warmed her. He gently rubbed her skin as Toby reached in under the blankets to press a few hypospray injections into her neck. Feeling helpless Salen tried to mentally raise the temperature of his skin, he knew that some Vulcans could control their body temperatures just by concentrating on it. A few minutes later Salen gasped violently just before the biobed started beeping a warning.

"Her heart just stopped!" Salen cried in alarm.

"We're going to have to take her out from under those blankets to get it going again." The new Doc announced.

"She can't afford to lose the heat." Toby countered.

"She's already dead, what more harm could we do? It's the only way to save her."

"No it isn't." Toby reached over to the medical cart and grabbed a small oval shaped device that was domed on one side and had a flat firm gel on the other. He offered it to Salen. Salen snaked his hand out just enough to take the device and then retreated to the warmth of the covers.

"Are you insane?" The new Doc snapped angrily. "This isn't even what the Hemiberg device is made for, you'll kill them both."

"Salen can handle it."

"Handle what?" Razor asked alarmed.

"What do I do?" Salen asked desperately.

"Place the gel side against her skin over her heart and press the contact on the top of it. It will shock her heart back into rhythm, although it is going to shock you at the same time."

Salen didn't care. He worked under the covers and quickly secured the Hemiberg device over Joanna's heart and pressed the contact. The small device went off with an audible crack. Salen arched his back and cried out as the powerful jolt passed through him from his contact with her skin. Grinding his teeth together against the pain he checked for a pulse, but the biobed was already informing them that it hadn't worked.

"Do it again." Toby directed.

"No, she's lost." The new Doc snapped. "Our best bet is to open her up and massage the heart directly."

"That's a sure fire way to kill her."

"So is this!"

Salen wasn't listen to the argument he trusted Toby's judgement and pressed the contact again. His already assaulted nervous system screamed out as it was electrocuted again. This time Joanna's heart not only jump started, but she gasped and flickered her eyes open. She managed to look up at Salen briefly before passing out again. Toby told Salen to take the device off to prevent it from accidentally shocking them again.

Joanna's breathing was far more stable now and her heart was getting stronger with every beat. A tense hour passed as Salen continued to embrace Joanna in his life saving heat. Exhausted from the stress and the powerful shocks Salen started to fade. Determined to stay awake Salen shook his head and bit down on his lower lip to wake himself up. Joanna's skin felt alive again and as she slept she rubbed her cheek against his chest. Salen was still battling to stay on the alert when Toby ran the tricorder over them again.

"It's okay, Salen, you can sleep. We'll keep watch over you both."

"She's going to be okay?"

"She out of the danger zone." Toby smiled.

"I can not thank you enough."

Salen managed to hold Joanna even closer. He smoothed out her curly hair as he stared at her in pure admiration. Salen kissed her forehead gently before settling back into the pillow. Salen was asleep in seconds. Joanna made a soft sound that was almost a purr as she made herself more comfortable on Salen's chest.

With the pair both asleep peacefully Razor was suddenly able to relax himself. He hadn't even realized how tense he had been during the past few hours. Toby made another pass with the medical tricorder and gave Razor a reassuring smile. Walking up to the side of the biobed Razor reached out and gently brushed the hair out of Joanna's eyes and then Salen's.

"Don't let go of her, Salen."

"I don't think he will." Toby smiled.

"Good work, Toby, thank you." Razor said. "You saved her life, and with it his."

"He almost killed them both." The new Doc huffed to himself. "Their survival will be pure luck, not science."

Razor narrowed his eyes as he turned on the new doctor. In a sudden fit of rage Razor rushed over to the older man and pinned him to the wall. The doctor didn't even struggle he just stared at Razor in wide eyed terror. Razor leaned in so that the doctor could feel his breath on his face.

"You're fired." Razor growled darkly.

"Wha...what?"

"Fired! Get the hell off my ship." 


	12. Chapter 12

Sorry it has been so long! I've been working six day weeks!

Chapter Twelve

"You're in for something special tonight, Vulcan." Wilson chuckled. "Play nice."

Salen swallowed hard with fear as Wilson thew him in a room that held only a bed with white sheets. He jolted as Wilson slammed the door shut behind him. Clean from a recent bath and wearing new clothes Salen stood motionless in the room and waited for his fate. A few minutes later a large muscular man came into the room with a strange smile on his face. Salen automatically backed away from him as he stepped closer. Backing into the corner Salen weld his eyes shut and cowered from the large human.

"Are you afraid?" He chuckled.

"Yes, Sir." Salen said quietly.

"You should be."

Salen cried out as the man grabbed the front of his shirt and easily tore it open. He tried to scramble away but he was jerked back by his long hair. Laughing the man brought out a small knife and slashed a burning cut into the back of Salen's shoulder. The man bit down on the new cut and sucked at Salen's green blood.

Tears streaked Salen's face as the powerful human continued to drink from him. He never understood why his blood was so sought after. He had heard Wilson once say something about it being an aphrodisiac, but he didn't know what that meant. When the human came up for air he made a deep growl of satisfaction.

"Lay down on your back on the bed, Vulcan."

"What?"

"Now!"

"Please just let me go..."

The human shoved Salen forward hard enough to send him to the floor. He reached down and grabbed Salen by the throat and lifted him up. Salen kicked and tried to scream as his air was cut off. The man threw him onto the bed and quickly jumped up and straddled him.

"Get off me! Wilson, help!"

"Why would he help you? I paid handsomely for an hour."

Salen was completely confused, he couldn't imagine what the man would want with him for that long. The man grabbed both of Salen's wrists and pinned them above his head. Weakened by captivity and starvation Salen couldn't free himself even when the man used his free hand to cut more marks into his flesh. Normally Wilson only cut him three or four times in one session, before too long this man had sliced him in more than a dozen places.

"Please stop!" Salen wailed as the white sheet under him became stained green.

"This is the easy part, Vulcan, enjoy this while you can."

Salen threw his head back and screamed at the top of his lung in hopes that Wilson would come save his prized pet from this man. However no help arrived. The man cut one last deep gash into Salen's chest before tossing the knife away. The large diagonal cut would become one of Salen's most distinguishable scars. Right now however Salen doubted he would live long enough to form another scar.

The man crushed his full weight down his victim and started concentrating on sucking on the blood that gushed from Salen's cut skin. The stinging cuts weren't as bad as the horror and panic of being pinned down by the large man. The man suddenly stopped drinking the blood, which now covered them both, and put his hands on the waist band of Salen's pants.

"What are you doing?"

"So you really are a virgin...fun."

"Wha..."

Salen gasped and tried to grab his pants as the man tore them away from him. The thin material ripped easily and Salen was left with just a handful of cloth in his hands. Naked and frightened he fought to free himself. The strong man easily kept him pinned by just pressing one hand against Salen's wounded chest.

"Let me go!" Salen screamed. "Stop, please, stop, let me go, please!"

The man got off Salen to take his own pants off. Not interested in sticking around for show and tell Salen bolted for the door. When he got there he found that it was locked from the outside. He pounded on the wooden door, but it was clear that no one could hear him, at least no one who cared. The human came up from behind and pinned him to the door. His naked flesh pressed against Salen and new panic rose to his throat.

"Please, sto..."

Joanna woke with a violent gasp. Her heart was pounding in her chest and cold sweat drenched her skin. Too terrified by the nightmare to even move she began crying. She felt flesh under her and instinctively knew it was Salen. She had one hand on his shoulder and gripped him tightly as she became lost to an uncontrollable bitter weeping. Salen woke and instantly wrapped his arms around her in a comforting embrace.

"Hush," Salen whispered "it is okay. I have you, you are safe."

"I...I knew you'd find me."

Joanna managed to calm herself as Salen nuzzled the top of her head affectionately. She was still shaking from a combination of the nightmare and the cold sweat mixed with dried blood that was clinging to her skin. Salen rubbed her lower back and took a deep breath. Joanna managed to smile as his actions lifted her up on her perch on his warm chest.

"Salen..." Joanna said softly "I had another one of your nightmares, just like the last time we were together."

"I am so sorry."

"Why is that happening?"

"I still do not know." Salen sighed. "Are you okay?"

"I am fine, thanks to you."

Joanna wiggled up so that she kiss the underside of Salen's jaw. It hadn't come as a surprise to her to wake up naked with an equally naked husband, she didn't know how she knew, but she knew everything that had happened since Salen found her on the broken Intrepid. Salen held her tighter and reached up to run his hand through her hair. She hated to admit it but for a moment his touch brought back memories of Malic's brutality.

Salen suddenly arched his back and cried out in pain. Joanna had to hold on tight just to keep from being thrown off. Salen tore his hand away from where he'd been stroking her face. He weld his eyes shut and panted for breath as he forced himself to settle. Joanna reached out to touch his face but he turned away.

"Salen?"

"I just saw what happened to you...with Malic."

"Salen, you're not supposed to be mind melding anymore."

"I do not mean to."

"Just like sharing your dreams."

Salen nodded sadly. Tired and still chilled Joanna laid her head down on Salen's chest once more and just listened to him breath. She was worried about his growing lost of control, however right now she was just pleased to be with him once more. Salen kissed the top of her head and nuzzled her once more.

"I love you." Salen purred. "I wish I could have killed Malic myself, Michaels..."

"He saved me."

"I know. I will make sure that he gets full post humous honors. My real question is why did Malic kill Bryce? That does not make any sense, they were both invaders on the Intrepid."

"I don't know, it all happened so fast."

"It does not matter, all I care about is that you are safe."

"I'm still cold."

"Would a hot shower help?"

"That depends..." Joanna smiled "will you be there?"

"I could use a shower."

Joanna went to sit up and cringed in pain. Salen sat up and cradled Joanna in his arms. She looked down at her leg and noticed the bone stimulator brace that was working hard to fix her shattered bones. She could walk with the brace on, but Salen didn't give her the chance. He lifted her up and carried her over to the shower.

Joanna reached out and pressed the contact that turned on the hot water. Salen stepped under the streaming water and let it run over their skin. Joanna moaned in pleasure as the hot water washed away the blood and sweat that was caked to her skin. Salen sat down on the shower floor and brought a soapy washcloth with him. Joanna let him scrub her skin before taking it away and using it on him. Salen peacefully allowed her to rub him down with the soapy cloth. She leaned in and gave him a kiss.

"Getting clean and dirty at the same time, I like it." Joanna chuckled.

"I do not understand. The soap only gets you clean, not dirty."

"I have missed you."

Salen and Joanna stayed in the warm water for a few more minutes before Salen carried her back over to the biobed. He went over to a closet and pulled out two pairs of black pants and two black shirts. Handing Joanna a set of the clothing he got dressed himself. Joanna struggled to get the pants on over her brace, but with Salen's help she managed. Sitting on the biobed Joanna reached out and pulled Salen into a warm embrace. Despite being in her arms he seemed so distant.

"Are you okay, Salen?"

"I thought I had lost you."

"I would never let that happen!" Razor's voice boomed as he came into sick bay.

"Razor." Joanna greeted warmly.

"Joanna," Razor stepped up and gave her a shallow bow "lovely as always."

"You're such a charmer, Razor." Joanna shook her head.

"It's just wonderful to have Salen's better half on board."

"I hope my husband hasn't been causing too much trouble."

"He's nothing but."

"I am standing right here, and I have my hearing aids on."

Joanna and Razor chuckled, but Salen just raised an eyebrow at the pair. Joanna suddenly found herself under Razor's intense gaze. She shifted her weight uncomfortably, he'd never looked at her this way before. It was a look she'd expect from a lover, not a friend. After her recent encounter the intimate stare was making her nervous. Razor suddenly took a step back and shook his head.

"Damn it, Salen!" Razor barked.

"What?"

"I'm falling in love with your wife."

Salen drew Joanna closer and glared at Razor. Razor put his hands up in surrender.

"Don't look at me like that, Salen." Razor said. "You're the one not keeping your emotions to yourself."

"Right." Salen relaxed. "I am sorry."

"Salen?" Joanna asked concerned. "What's going on?"

"Nothing."

There was an uncomfortable silence that was interrupted by the intercom.

"Razor?" Toby asked through the intercom.

"What did you find, Toby?"

"The big guy was definitely killed by a Starfleet issue phaser, the other guy however was killed by a different kind of weapon."

"Malic killed Bryce." Salen said simply.

"How do you know their names?"

"Joanna told me. Malic was going to rape her, Bryce tried to stop him and Malic killed him."

"That doesn't make any sense." Razor said. "They turned on each other? Why?"

"That I do not know."

"Toby, anything else?"

"The smaller guy, this Bryce, has a tattoo. That's about all."

"A tattoo? Let's see it."

"It's already in the computer system."

Razor went over to the computer and brought up the image that Toby had taken. Salen stepped up and looked as well. It was the same tattoo that the hostages had all shared. Razor reached up and scratched the back of his head with a confused look.

"They're connected." Razor growled.

"But how?"

"That's the million dollar question."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

"Was anyone killed?"

"One of ours, Bryce, one of the mercenaries, and from sub space chatter it looks like one Starfleet died."

"How?"

"Part of the ship collapsed on him."

"What happened to Bryce and the mercenary?"

"I don't know, their life sign monitors just told us they were dead."

"You left them behind?"

"I'm sorry, Sir, we couldn't find them."

"Shit."

North dragged his hands through his short blonde hair and growled in frustration. The man who had brought him the news shifted his weight uneasily. Going through the list of salvaged parts he grabbed the tablet and threw it against the wall with a cry of rage.

"Worthless!" North snarled. "I don't know where Bryce got the harebrained idea to hit a Federation ship, but he could have at least done better than a Miranda class. If he wasn't dead I'd kill him myself!"

"He thought he was helping the cause. We are tired of waiting for Sy to get a hold of the Enterprise."

"We're all tired of that." North sighed. "That fool is never going to get the Enterprise."

"The Enterprise isn't even showing herself. The hostage trap backfired."

"I still don't believe that job was pulled off by local Starfleet boys. Whoever crashed in on that little party was way too skilled to be backwater plant Starfleet material."

"Talis waited in the shadow of the moon, no ships, let alone a Federation ship ever came near the planet."

"I read Talis's report, I just get the feeling that it wasn't the whole truth."

"We can sell what was salva..."

"Get out of my office before you really piss me off!" North snapped. "We're already far more on the Federation's radar than is safe, selling those parts will just have them swarming down on us. No, just keep whatever we need and scrap the rest. And spread the word through the ranks that if anyone is caught pulling off another unofficial mission against the Federation that I will personally yank their bowels out!"

"Yes, Sir."

Agitated by the news about the Intrepid North got to his feet and began to pace his large office. He glanced out at the purple sky and the swirls of toxic gas that were lashing at the thick glass that separated him from the uninhabitable planet beyond. They had been gathering followers for so long that it was now becoming too difficult to control them.

"We are going to lose everything. They bring me scraps when what I need is a real ship."

North sat back down at his desk and pulled up the charting information that had been smuggled out for him. He still didn't understand why the Enterprise hadn't been sent to deal with the hostage situation on Ioa 7, she had been the only Federation ship within a thirty light year spans. North was interrupted by a knock at his door.

"What?"

"Someone's in a bad mood." Fisher chuckled as he entered North's office.

"Did you hear about the Intrepid?"

"I did." Fisher nodded. "But then I also learned that Bryce wasn't the total incompetent that I thought he was."

"And what makes you give him that glowing review?"

"He had one of his men hack into the security system of the Intrepid and it sent us video footage of the rescue of the Intrepid."

"The Enterprise?"

"Better." Fisher smiled.

"Better? The Enterprise is the jewel of the fleet."

"Something tells me the Enterprise is a worthless hunk of metal next to what we've found."

Fisher came over with his tablet and handed it over to North. North furrowed his brow as he looked at the sleek ship on the looping video. She looked fast just sitting there. He suddenly noticed that at the end of the loop the ship flickered in and out of view for a moment. He looked up at Fisher and saw that he was grinning from ear to ear.

"What's that look for? This ship is pretty, but that doesn't mean she's powerful."

"You see the flicker?"

"Yeah."

"That was what triggered the external cameras on the Intrepid in the first place."

"I don't understand."

"That ship has a cloaking device, and yet it's a Federation vessel."

"How do you know that?"

"Because of who's on her crew."

Fisher sat on the edge of his friend's desk and reached over to tap on the tablet. A new video came up of the interior of the ransacked ship. There was two figures dressed in black prowling the halls. Their backs were to this particular camera, but as soon as North saw the white hair he feared he knew exactly who he was looking at. His suspicions were confirmed when the Vulcan turned to show his profile, at which point Fisher froze the screen.

"Salen Pike," North sighed "the missing Vulcan."

"Amazing, right? How long did Sy wait for him to get into and graduate from Starfleet only to have him drop off the face of the Milky Way Galaxy? Assigned to ship that he never stepped foot on."

"What the hell is he doing on the Intrepid?"

"Rescuing his wife, Joanna McCoy."

"Who's the other guy, the human with him?"

"We don't know yet. I've watched all of the video we got and from the looks of things, he's the one in charge. Probably Captain of that Black Beauty starship."

"So Starfleet does have a black ops." North mused as he stared at Salen and Razor, frozen on the screen. "The Officers in the hostage scheme, they said they were rescued by men in black...I thought they were being figurative."

"It explains why Talis never saw another ship, they must never have turned off the cloaking device while at Ioa 7."

"Does Sy know anything about this?"

"No. I made sure when I learned about the video that I got the only copy. I don't think anyone's even dared to tell him that Bryce hit the Intrepid."

"Good. Let's keep it that way as long as possible."

"North, Sy has been looking for Salen for years."

"He hasn't been looking for him, he's been waiting for him. He either wants or needs something from him...either way it can't be good for us."

"What should we do next?"

"I want that ship..." North said as he looked at Razor. "Send the word out, I want this guy brought to me. He has to take shore leave somewhere. I want every eye on the look out for him, spread his photo to every last member we can trust."

"What should I tell Sy?"

"For now: nothing."

North stared at the tablet where he had brought up the video of the Black Diamond. He traced the outline of the ship lovingly. It was the perfect ship, he was already calculating in his mind how fast she was by judging the distance between Ioa 7 and the Intrepid. Fisher crossed his arms over his chest.

"What about the Vulcan?" Fisher asked.

"I don't know what Sy wants with Salen...but we can't risk it."

"So..."

"Tell the men that the Vulcan is to be killed on sight."


	14. Chapter 14

NOTE from the PHOENIX: Sorry it has taken so long to update, now that the holidays are over I'll be able to write more.

Chapter Fourteen

"Daddy!"

"JoJo!"

Joanna threw herself into her father's arms. McCoy hugged his daughter tight and for a moment it looked as though he actually might never let go. When they had first boarded the Enterprise Salen could see the stressing in his father in law's eyes. Starfleet had alerted the Enterprise that the Intrepid had sent out a distress call before the Diamond could contact them and let them know that Joanna was safe. Even after getting the call it was clear that the doctor wasn't ready to believe his baby was safe until he had her in his arms.

"Daddy, you can let go...it's getting hard to breath."

"Sorry." McCoy muttered as he released her.

"I do love family reunions." Kirk said with a chuckle. "It's a nice reminder that our good doctor is human after all."

"For god's sakes, Jim, a man is dead, a Starship has been destroyed, my daughter almos..."

"You're right, Bones," Kirk held his hands up in surrender "I'm glad you're okay, Joanna."

"Captain?" Razor asked.

"Yes?"

"I was wondering if anyone on your crew has this tattoo."

Razor held out a tablet to Kirk with a close up picture of the tattoo on Bryce's shoulder. Kirk studied it for a moment before shaking his head and handing it back to Razor.

"Sorry, not that I know of. You'd have to go through the Starfleet database."

"I did, but I think it has recently been tampered with. Six men that I had found to have this tattoo in the database are missing."

"The men are missing, or the photos of their tattoos?"

"Both."

"Now that is odd, you think all of this was an inside job?"

"No, yes, maybe. I don't know." Razor shook his head. "I'm not sure what to make of it yet, it just seems like such a strange coincidence."

"In the immortal words of Ian Fleming: 'Once is happenstance, Twice is coincidence, Three times is enemy action.'."

"So I need to wait till I find one more connection?"

"Unless you've got a better idea."

"I don't." Razor admitted. "The Brass back at the Dog's HQ think I'm looking too much into this."

"Well I'll keep my eye out for anyone with that tat."

"Thank you, Captain."

The conversation died down for a moment. Salen shifted his weight uncomfortably. He was trying his hardest to keep any and all emotion to himself in fear that Spock was going to pick up on his recent loss of control. However to Salen it was clear that Spock could sense that he was nervous. Spock calmly stepped up to Salen and looked him over for a second.

"Salen, may I speak with you privately for a moment?" Spock asked.

"Yes, Sir." Salen replied meekly.

Spock left the group with the understanding that Salen would follow him. Razor shot Spock a dirty look when he walked past, he didn't like the way the Vulcan's presents put his partner on edge. When Salen to follow Razor casually reached out and stopped him to whisper in his keen ear.

"Don't let him get to you, Salen." Razor said so quietly that even Salen could barely hear him.

Salen flashed Razor a tight lipped smile. He did appreciate Razor's support, but it didn't keep the knot in his stomach from tightening painfully. Spock had disappeared into a private VIP room. Taking a deep breath Salen stepped inside, ready for the standard 'you need to control yourself before you hurt someone' lecture.

Spock was standing by the floor-to-ceiling window staring out into space. He glanced over his shoulder at Salen before returning to look at the stars. Salen furrowed his brow, he could have sworn he had seen a look of sorrow, perhaps even pity place across Spock's usually stoic features. Salen felt a flash of anger that Spock of all people would look down on him with pity.

"Spock, I know why you wanted to speak to me and I do not need any more of your empty advice." Salen said firmly. "I have tried everything you have ever told me to try and gain better control and nothing has ever worked. From now on I will deal with it myself, I do not wish to be lectured by you any longer."

"It was never my intent to lecture you, Salen." Spock returned calmly. "You are, however, currently radiating emotion to the point where I can feel it in my own blood. That is a dangerous trait, Salen, and a rare one even for a Vulcan."

"It is my concern, not yours."

"You are correct." Spock said with a slight nod.

"Then if you will excuse me I would like to spend what limited time I have left aboard the Enterprise with my wife."

"I have not yet explained to you why I wished to speak with you."

"I...I thought it was about my emotions."

"No."

Spock turned away from the window and stepped up to Salen. His anger forgotten Salen's anxiety quickly returned. For the first time Salen noticed that there was something in Spock's hand. Whatever it was that Spock was holding it was clear that he was uncertain if he should give it to Salen or not. After a short pause Spock held the small flat object out.

Salen took the gift. It was a five by five inch digital tablet. Looking at the tablet Salen found himself looking at a tiny baby Vulcan swaddled in white cloth. The clearly newborn was sleeping peacefully. Salen didn't understand why Spock would give this image to him.

"What is this?"

"Your daughter."

Salen nearly dropped the tablet in shock. He stared at her again, but he still could not comprehend it. He shook his head in denial.

"No. No, it can not be. T'Pring should not be due for another month."

"She went into labor early, the child is premature."

"Is...is she okay?"

"It is my understanding that both mother and child are doing well."

Salen felt like the floor had dropped out from beneath him. So many thoughts raced through his mind that none of them made any sense. He reached out and gently touched the image of his sleeping daughter.

"What is her name?"

"It was difficult enough to get the image, I was unable to get her name. Before the child is a year old she will be entered into the Vulcan census, you can look her name up then."

"I should not have to 'look up' my own daughter's name." Salen growled.

"There is nothing I can do. The verbal contract you made with T'Pring is binding."

"Why did you even give this to me?"

"I was unsure if I should. However, I felt you deserved to have it."

Without further explanation Spock left Salen alone with the photo. Salen sat down on the edge of the bed that took up the middle of the small VIP room. He stared into the photo, memorizing the infants features. After brushing away a stray tear that had slipped down his cheek Salen gently placed the tablet into the night stand drawer. Standing up to leave he paused before sliding the drawer closed.

"I am sorry that I have to leave you behind, but I can not live with a constant reminder of the terriable choice I made that night. I can only pray that your life is a happy one and that you never, not even for one moment, think that your father does not love you..."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen

"Salen, what's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"That doesn't work on me." Joanna said with a sad smile. "I know you better than that. Plus...it's almost like I can actually feel your pain."

"What do you mean?" Salen asked nervously.

"I don't know it's hard to describe. I feel this terrible heartache, but I'm with you and I'm happy...so I know that pain can't be my own. You on the other hand, you look so sad. What did Spock say to you?"

Even though they were currently in a different VIP room Salen's eyes went to the nightstand table. Joanna was sitting on the edge of the bed watching her husband with concern. Unsure of what to do Salen paced back and forth for a moment. Eventually Joanna reached out and took his hand as he went by to stop him. Smiling sadly Salen sat down on the edge of the bed next to her. Unable to look Joanna in the eyes he stared at the floor.

"Salen?"

"Spock...Spock told me that I have recently become a father."

"A fath...oh, T'Pring...I had almost forgotten." Joanna leaned in and kissed Salen's forehead. "Salen, you did what you had to, and you brought a wonderful new life into the galaxy."

"What if she grows up to be just like me?" Salen whispered.

"Wonderful, kind, and intelligent?" Joanna said with a smile.

"A freak."

"Salen, you're not a freak."

"What if I am? What if my lack of emotional control has nothing to do with my lack of training. Even if I am emotional it should not effect others, Vulcans are touch telepaths."

"My father has told me stories where Spock has shown far more power than mere 'touch' telepathy."

"You know my parents never worked off world until I was born?" Salen continued as if he hadn't heard her. "Sometimes I wonder if they knew something was wrong with me and that is why they kept me isolated, so I would not embarrass them or hurt others."

"Salen, if your parents could see the man you've become they would be so proud of you."

"No...they would not."

Joanna sighed sadly, the pressure on her heart was now her own as well as what she was getting from Salen. Sitting on the edge of the bed Salen had his hands folded in his lap. He was still staring blankly at the floor. Joanna put her arms around him and nuzzled his neck affectionately. Salen reached up and put his hand on Joanna's arm to show appreciation of her support.

"Everything is going to be okay, Salen."

"Do you know what I love about you?" Salen asked suddenly.

"What's that?"

"The fact that you honestly believe what you just said to me."

Joanna laughed and Salen joined in with a quiet chuckle. Feeling that his mood had been lightened somewhat Joanna risked seeking out a kiss. Salen hesitated at first, but he quickly gave in to her intentions. Returning the passionate kiss Salen carded his hand into Joanna's hair. Using his purchased to tilt her head back he kissed a trail down her throat. When he started to lean her back on the bed Joanna raised a questioning eyebrow.

"Do you think we have time for this?" Joanna teased.

"I am not due back on the Black Diamond for another two hours."

"I know."

It took Salen a moment to understand the joke, but then he smiled brightly. When he agreed that they were short on time and went to pull away Joanna wrapped her arms around his neck and dragged him back down on top of her. Salen didn't put up much of a struggle.

After their amours encounter Joanna was sleeping peacefully in the afterglow. Salen laid next to her wide awake. Ten minutes later Salen decided he couldn't hold still any long. Very carefully untangling himself from his wife Salen quietly got to his feet and got dressed. He tiptoed towards the door.

"You're certainly not thinking of leaving without saying 'good-bye' are you?" Joanna accused.

"No. I just have to do something before I leave. I'll be right back."

"Okay." Joanna laid back down. "Please be nice to Spock."

Salen didn't answer because any answer he gave would be a form of a lie. It was not his intention to seek out Spock. Actually he was hoping to avoid him entirely. Salen had been given the two hours with Joanna while the rescue of Intrepid was completed. Joanna had offered her services as a doctor, but there were only a handful of people who needed to be seen.

It was late at night aboard the Enterprise and most of the crew was off duty or out on the Intrepid salvaging what little was left. There was so much damage to the ship that it was decided that it was not worth the cost to tow her back to a Federation for repairs. Once the strip job that the attackers had started was finished the Enterprise would destroy the rest.

As Salen walked the halls the few people he passed looked at him anxiously. He worried that they were fearful of him because they could feel his own tension as they approached. Trying to remain as calm as possible Salen walked into Sick Bay. The staff was busy making sure that everyone from the Intrepid was in stable condition. Keeping his head down Salen tried to look like just another dazed member of the Intrepid crew.

Making it to the back offices Salen made quick work of the coded lock on the supply room. He wasn't sure how he became so good with locks, however Starfleet often sent him prototypes of their latest designs to see if he could crack them. So far the only locks he couldn't unlock by hand were the old fashion mechanical ones, like the one Wilson used to have on his cage door. Of course a phaser could make quick work of a metal lock so Starfleet had no interest in them.

Inside the medical supply room Salen began searching through the hypospray vials. Everything was labeled clearly, but Salen was having trouble deciphering what order everything was in. Eventually he came to the conclusion that the drugs that were used most often were the ones that were easiest to reach.

"So what I am seeking must be tucked away somewhere." Salen muttered to himself.

Salen was so engrossed in his search that he didn't hear the door slide open. Crouched down he was reading the labels of some of the rarer drugs. For a moment the new comer just watched the Vulcan riffling through the supplies.

"What are you looking for, Salen?"

Salen gasped sharply at the deep gravely voice. Standing up too quickly he banged his head on the shelving that was holding the tiny glass vials. Turning around Salen looked into the intense eyes of his father-in-law. Fearful about having been caught Salen's heart raced and pounded against his ribs.

"I...I am sorry, Dr. McCoy." Salen stuttered. "I was just...never mind."

"Salen, what are you after?"

"I can explain."

"Are you sure? So far you're not doing a very good job of that."

Becoming increasingly nervous Salen took a step closer in hopes that McCoy would back away and let him out of the supply room. When Salen stepped forward McCoy winced in pain. He reached up and rubbed his chest over his heart. Salen's own heart was still beating far faster than was comfortable. McCoy winced again and seemed to be having trouble breathing. Salen noticed with alarm that the doctor was starting to sweat heavily.

"Dr. McCoy? Are you okay?"

"My hea..."

Before he could finish McCoy grabbed his uniform over his heart and collapsed. Panicking Salen leapt to his side. Arching his back McCoy cried out weakly as the mysterious aliment became more severe. Salen lifted McCoy up and rushed out into the Sick Bay.

"Someone help me!" Salen cried.

"Dr. McCoy!" Nurse Chapel exclaimed. "What happened?"

"I do not know, he just collapsed."

"Get him on the bed."

Salen laid McCoy on the biobed and the sensors went wild. One of the other on hand doctors ran over and tried to figure out what was happening. He looked over the readings in shock.

"His heart rate is nearly three hundred beats per minute!"

Salen backed away in horror. At three hundred beats per minute the human heart would no longer actually pump blood, it would be quivering uselessly and quickly stop under the strain. As a Vulcan Salen's own heart rate was normally in the upper two hundreds, but could easily beat at four to five. Right now he feared his own heart was near its upper limits from the adrenaline. He backed away further to allow the medical team room to work. Salen backed up until his back was against the far wall.

"Wait, wait," the doctor said "his heart is stabilizing, 250, 220, 180, 150...88..."

"What did you do, Doctor?" Nurse Chapel asked.

"Nothing." The young doctor admited. "His heart rate just suddenly slowed naturally."

"Oh no..." Salen breathed in horror. "I did this."

"Dr. McCoy, can you hear me?" Nurse Chapel asked in concern.

"I hear you, Nurse." McCoy grumbled as he opened his eyes. "I'm fine."

"Take it easy, Doctor." The younger doctor advised.

"I don't need your lecturing. I'm fine now." McCoy snapped. "Go back to the Intrepid crew."

"Doct..."

"That's an order!"

"Yes, Doctor."

Salen remained in his place against the far wall, doing the best he could to slow his frantic heart. McCoy sat up slowly and looked over at Salen. He didn't look angry, but he did look worried.

"So...are you ready to tell me what you were looking for in my supply closet?" McCoy asked.

"Vuladin."

"Some thing told me that's what it was."

"I am sorry."

"That stuff will kill you, you know that right?"

"It will also control my emotions. I need something, my stronger emotions are affecting those around me. My fear almost sent your heart into arrest."

"Why is this happening?"

"I do not know, no one knows. It started shortly after I started mind melding and has progressively become worse." Salen sighed. "I just want it to stop. I was hoping a low dose of Vuladin would take the edge off."

""Take the edge off'?" McCoy repeated. "That's something an addict would say."

"I feel as out of control as one."

"You're not an addict, Salen, but I do think you need help. Maybe Spock..."

"There is nothing more Spock can teach me." Salen said quickly. "Trust me, I can not control this any more than someone with diabetes can control their blood sugar with their mind. Please, just let me have the Vuladin. I will take all responsibility if it makes me sick."

McCoy thought about Salen's request for a moment before sighing in defeat. Getting off the biobed he walked into the supply closet. Salen made sure to keep his distance as McCoy went past. After a few minutes McCoy returned with the vial of blue Vuladin. He clicked it into a hypospray pen and set the dosage.

"I'm setting this to a micro dosage." McCoy offered the hypo to Salen, but Salen didn't dare draw nearer. "For Space's Sake, Kid, get your ass over here. I'll be fine."

Salen took a deep breath and managed to calm himself. He stepped up to his father-in-law and took the offered hypospray. Salen turned his arm wrist up and sunk the tip of the hypo into underarm. It was a minute dose, but Salen felt nearly instant relief.

"Salen, even at this low dose continued use is going to cause organ damage. It is going to cut your lifespan."

"I have no interest in living a Vulcan lifespan, I only wish to live as long as Joanna."

"You don't understand. Salen, this could kill you in a matter of months."

"It is a risk I will have to take." Salen said firmly. "I can not continue to pose such a threat to everyone around me. I will keep searching for another answer, but in the mean time this will have to do."

"I'm sure you would be safe with the Vulcans, they wouldn't be affected by the emotions the way humans are."

"No. I would rather be with my human friends and wife for two months than live with the Vulcans for two hundred years."

"Salen, what makes you hate Vulcans with such passion?"

"I do not hate them. I fear them."

"Why?"

"Because they fear me." 


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen

"Oh, Razor...what were you thinking?"

Talking to himself didn't make Razor feel any better. If anything it just made him more painfully aware of the catastrophic decision he'd made. Too late to turn back now he just paced around in his quarters aboard the Black Diamond. They had left the Enterprise behind several hours ago and they were already heading towards their next mission.

Razor had reported back to Admiral Kinler about the possible connection between the mysterious hostages and the attack on the Intrepid. Kinler said he was going to look into it, but it was clear that the Admiral thought the theory of there being a connection was a thin one at best. Razor wasn't sure if he even believed it himself. The only evidence he had was a scribble of ink on someone's skin that could have any one of a thousand meanings.

The sound of running water coming from his bathroom brought Razor's attention back to the problem at hand. He held his breath as he waited for his guest to step out of the washroom. A young handsome man with deep brown hair and sparkling blue eyes stepped out of the bathroom with a lupin grin on his face. Razor stared at him for a moment before shaking his head sadly.

"This is the worst idea in the history of ideas." Razor muttered.

"Don't be like that." The man said. "The Black Diamond needed a CMO, and I was available."

"Neither of those facts makes this a good idea...uh..."

"You can just call me 'Doc'."

"Right. Well, Doc, I guess I should give you the fifty cent tour."

"That would be lovely."

"Lovely?"

"Sorry, slip of the tongue."

"Listen, try not to talk like that." Razor said seriously. "The guys on this ship are guy guys, and they only like other guy guys. Understand?"

"Not really."

"Just no 'fairy' talk, got it?"

"Got it." Doc said in an exaggeratedly deep voice.

"Worst...idea...ever."

Razor shook his head sadly and walked over to the door. He gestured for the Doc to follow him and he did so. They took a quick tour of the ship before heading down to sick bay. The Doc looked around and nodded his approval.

"This is an amazingly advanced Sick Bay."

"Best in the fleet." Razor said proudly. "You shouldn't be too busy, my boys don't tend to get injured very often thanks to the phaser suits."

"There is something I've wanted to ask you about those."

"What's that?"

"How come you don't have any head protection? What happens if someone decides to shoot you in the face?"

"That is an interesting point. Starfleet research showed that 99% of all fatal phaser wounds are to the chest and torso. No one ever aims for the head since a body shot is an easier target. So we decided to have the extra vision and cut down on the weight of the suit by not bothering with head gear."

"I guess that makes sense."

"So...you'll probably want to meet the man who is going to be your most troublesome patient."

"Is he really that much trouble?"

"Honestly...yes."

Razor walked over to the intercom and clicked it on. Salen was up on the Bridge but Razor called him down to the Sick Bay. Razor passed the time waiting for Salen by looking the new doctor over with a critical eye. He had to admit that he did blend in well with the rest of the Dogs in a physical sense.

Salen arrived in the Sick Bay and stopped about twenty feet from the new comer. He stared at the Doc with a mix expression of surprise and distrust. Doc flashed Salen a shy smile which caused Salen to narrow his eyes in further suspicion. Razor came up and put his arm around Salen's shoulder to try and put him more at ease as he guided him to come closer to the newest crew member.

"Salen, I'd like you to meet our new CMO."

"You are from the Enterprise?" Salen asked.

"Sort of." The Doc replied. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

The doctor held his hand out for Salen to shake. Razor found himself holding his breath as he waited for the two to make physical contact. Salen could clearly sense that something wasn't right with the scene and glared at Razor. Razor just shrugged and motioned for Salen to take the Doc's hand. Begrudgingly Salen reached out and shook the stranger's hand. Salen gasphed sharply as he pulled his hand away and turned to Razor.

"Razor, I need to talk to you."

"I figured you might." Razor turned to the Doc. "Excuse us for one moment."

"Of course." The Doc replied with a bright smile and quiet chuckle.

Salen stared at the man intensely until Razor took him by the upper arm and pulled him into the private office. Razor closed the door and Salen began pacing back and forth in a highly agitated manner. He looked out the one way window at the Doc who was leaning casually against one of the biobeds. Salen turned an accusing glare on Razor.

"Razor, what is going on?"

"What do you mean?" Razor asked with mock innocents.

"There is something wrong with that man."

"Can you tell me what?"

"I...uh..." Salen hesitated. "I do not know, it does not make sense. Whoever he has told you he is, I am confident that he is lying."

"Who do you think he is?"

"I do not know."

"What was your first impression when you shook his hand. Who did you think it was?"

"What I thought makes no sense."

"What did you think?" Razor pressed.

"When I touched him I could have sworn he was Joanna." Salen admitted.

"He is."

"Wha...what?"

"I swear to you Salen that this wasn't my idea. Even I didn't remember that we had that device on this ship. Her father was one of the men who first discovered it on Tanlic 3, he must have told her a story about it. She came to me and when I said we had it she would not take no for an answer."

"What are you talking about?" Salen snarled.

"Joanna is wearing a belt with an alien device that projects a hologram on the wearer. She can look like whatever she wants to with it. I've never bothered with the stupid thing cause it only works close to a major power source. The usefulness of the belt is limited to aboard this ship."

Salen was left completely speechless. Razor became increasingly nervous as Salen continued to motionlessly stare at him. For all Razor knew his friend was attempting to kill him with his mind. Salen suddenly snapped out of his spell and stormed out of the office. The masculine looking Joanna forced a brave smile as Salen approached her.

"Salen, don't be mad..."

Salen snatched Joanna's wrist and dragged her out of Sick Bay. She didn't protest as he guided her through the halls. When they reached his quarters Salen released her and locked the door behind himself. Joanna crossed her arms over her newly flattened chest and prepared for what she figured was going to be their first heated argument. Salen walked up to her and stared into her eyes that were still undeniably hers.

"Salen..."

"Turn it off." Salen demanded.

"What?"

"The device. Turn it off."

Joanna took a breath to argue, but decided against it. She pulled up her Diamond Dog's uniform shirt and revealed what looked like a normal belt. When she touched the buckle it revealed itself to be a small touch screen. She tapped on the contacts and the illusion around her flickered for a moment before vanishing completely.

Joanna looked up at Salen and smiled nervously as she waited for his reaction. Salen looked her over as if seeing her for the very first time. Joanna tensed slightly when he stepped up to her. Salen suddenly reached up and carded his hands into her hair and pulled her into an aggressive kiss. Joanna put her arms around his neck and she could feel his muscles relaxing as he continued the passionate exchange.

Once they were both breathless Salen broke the kiss off. He held her to his chest and nuzzled her gently. Joanna smiled and closed her eyes as she rested her head against him. Salen took a deep breath and released it in a contented sigh. He was holding on to her so tightly that Joanna started to wonder if he ever had plans of releasing her. Eventually he did let go and took a step back to look her over once again. Salen shook his head with a rueful smile.

"So you're not mad?"

"I am furious...but I am learning to control such emotions." 


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

"Salen? Are you okay?"

"Not really."

Salen grit his teeth together as another wave of nausea washed over him. Joanna was hovering over him in the small bathroom in concern. Salen forced a smile and struggled to get to his feet. Now that he had been physically ill he was feeling better. He turned on the water and splashed some on his face. Joanna handed him a towel.

"Thank you."

"I can't believe my father actually gave you Vuladin." Joanna grumbled.

"We both thought I would have at least a few months before I got sick, not just a few weeks."

"You have to stop taking it."

"I can not." Salen shook his head. "It has been working."

"It's killing you."

"You said yourself that I am in perfect health beyond the nausea."

"It is only a matter of time before it starts to do some real damage. That stuff is poison."

"If you want me to stop the Vuladin you will need to create something that gives me the same emotional control."

"I'm a doctor, not a chemist." Joanna said seriously.

"I promise the moment you discover any true physical damage to my body that I will stop taking the Vuladin."

"The moment I find any physical damage I'm taking it away from you!"

"Fine." Salen leaned in and kissed her cheek. "You had better change into 'Jon', we both need to get to work."

It was clear that Joanna wanted to continue their conversation, but she just sighed. There was a connecting door between their quarters that she used to retreat to her alter ego's quarters. So far none of the crew had questioned or even shown any suspicion of the new CMO. Salen was already in uniform so he went directly to the bridge.

"Hey, Salen." Razor greeted. "You're looking a little green around the gills, are you alright?"

"I do not understand...I do not have gills."

"It's one of those pesky human expressions. It just means you look like you've been sick."

"That Vuladin is rough stuff, eh?"

"Who told you about that?"

"The new CMO of course, I am his Superior Officer." Razor said smugly.

"I have passed my physical."

"Make sure that you continue to do so."

"Colonel," Flash called from the helm "we are approaching Belaton."

"Standard orbit, Flash."

"Cloak?"

"Nah," Razor shook his head "no need. Belaton is a neutral planet that caters to smugglers and the ilk, they specialize in not caring who is orbiting them."

"Aye, Sir."

"Okay, Salen, take the bridge I'll be back in two shakes of a lamb's tail."

"What? I am coming with you."

"No, you're not." Razor said.

"Why not?"

"Because you don't exactly 'blend'." Razor chuckled as he reached out and tugged on Salen's white hair. "Besides this is just a snatch and grab, simple mission. In fact they rarely come less complicated."

Before Salen could protest further Razor headed down towards the transport room. He wasn't surprised when Salen only followed orders to stay on the bridge for about five minutes before catching up with him. Razor ignored him as he got changed into the tradition dress of the planet below.

"Razor, you should not go alone."

"I'm not." Razor assured. "Cobalt and Ice are coming."

"Is it really my white hair that is keeping me off this mission?"

"No. It's your pointy ears."

"Razor..."

"Salen, this is not up for debate." Razor interupted. "We are just going down there to 'forcibly extradite' a Federation fugitive. No big deal. However the last thing we really need right now is for a Vulcan to be spotted on a non-Federation planet. It will start chatter that we don't need. This is a pit stop of a planet and rumors fly from here faster than the ships that carry them."

"I should just cut my ear off." Salen muttered.

"Bite your tongue. Besides, Joanna would divorce you if you did." Razor teased. "Just hold down the bridge for me on this one, okay?"

"Okay." Salen agreed begrudgingly.

"Good man. We shouldn't be more than an hour or two."

"Wait, is that what you're wearing?"

"I know, not really my style..." Razor sighed as he looked down at the ornate outfit with it's brown and black leather duster accented in large brass buckles.

"What about your phaser suit?"

"Don't need it."

"I think you should wear it. It would be unnoticeable under what you are wearing."

"Salen, this guy has no idea we are coming. He thinks he's safe on this planet."

"It does not take much for a phaser fight to break out around you."

"You have a point there." Razor mused. "Would it make you feel better about being left behind?"

"Yes."

"Okay."

Razor changed out of his outfit long enough to pull on his phaser suit. When Cobalt and Ice arrived Razor gave them the order to dress in the protective uniform as well. The pair looked at Razor oddly for a moment, but they followed orders. They all went down to the transport room. Salen started tapping the coordinates into the computer.

"Cobalt, Ice, stay back unless this jackass tries to run. Got it?"

"Got it."

"Salen, if we don't make contact in two hours send back up."

"An hour seems like an exceedingly long time for a lamb to shake his tail."

"What?"

"You said this mission would take 'two shakes of a lambs tail'."

"Vulcans." Razor rolled his eyes. "Energize."

Salen smiled and pressed the contact that energized the transporter. The three men disappeared in a flash of swirling lights. Salen stared at the empty pad and wondered if it was truly his Vulcan features that had made Razor decide to leave him behind.

"Even if I cannot be human, maybe my life would be easier if I looked like one." 


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

"Razor? Can you hear me?"

"Yes, Salen." Razor rolled his eyes. "What part of 'this is just a simple pick up mission' did you not get?"

"You are the one who always told me that there are no simple missions."

"Well I lied. Just put the communicator down and go, I don't know, go find something to do."

"I can not put my communicator down. Remember that I had my hearing aid modified to act as a communicator? It is always with me."

"So you can always hear me?" Razor asked alarmed.

"Only when you are in your phaser uniform with your communicator on."

"Great. Then I'm turning mine off."

"Razor, do not tur..."

"Good bye, Salen."

Razor reached up under the collar of his uniform and pressed the contact that disconnected his communicator. Cobalt and Ice gave Razor a similar amused look. Razor shook his head sadly.

"Don't say a word." Razor chuckled.

"You two are like an old married couple." Cobalt mocked.

"Yeah," Razor sighed "that must be why I feel like I'm cheating on him going out on a mission without him."

"Salen would make things more difficult." Ice pointed out.

"I know that, I just feel bad that he has to be left behind just because he's Vulcan."

"I doubt he'd even be with the Dog's if he wasn't."

"Good point." Razor smiled. "Without those Vulcan traits I doubt he would have ever caught Beckett's eye. Come on, let's go get this scumbag and get back to the ship. This planet smells like cheap liquor and even cheaper tobacco."

"Throw in some cheap whores and this planet rockets to the top of my places to retire list." Cobalt grinned.

"Amen." Ice agreed.

Razor laughed and shook his head at the men. They were walking down the streets of the backwater planet. It was getting late at night, but the dirty city was still awake. The place had a China Town type feel to it with a myriad of shops, restaurants, and bars that lined the narrow stone street. Razor got the idea that anything could be purchased here if you knew who to talk to.

Razor happened to know exactly who to talk to and led Ice and Cobalt into a small shop that was crammed with antiques. Razor made his way through clutter and disorder till he came to the back counter. He reached out and rang a small bell on the desk.

"Hang on, hang on." A dusty voice came from the back. "Who is it? What do you want? It is late."

"It's no one, and I want nothing."

"Razor?" An man who looked as old as the stuff in his store came out from the back. "Razor! You still alive?"

"Is that any more shocking than the fact that you're still alive?"

"Good point." The old man nodded sagely. "What you want now?"

"I want to help you."

"Oh?" The old man raised a distrusting eyebrow.

"There's a parasite on your planet. I want to remove him." Razor showed the man a digital picture. "Seen him?"

"Maybe."

Razor chuckled and reached into the pocket of his deep red leather jacket and pulled out a wad of the local currency. He went to hand the money over and the old man's narrow eyes widened. Razor pulled the money back.

"Ah, ah." Razor chastised. "Where is he?"

"He at the Golden Dragon, not far from here. Down half mile, on left, big gold sign. Dragon attracts all the scum. You will be right at home."

"I'm sure I will."

Razor handed over the cash and led Cobalt and Ice back out onto the street. The two other men couldn't keep quiet for long.

"So...Razor, you've been here before?" Cobalt asked.

"Once."

"Not in the mood to talk about it, eh?"

"Not a big deal, just a side job Beckett asked me to do."

"You always were his favorite." Ice said.

Cobalt glared at Ice and the young man felt silent. Razor hadn't been upset by Ice's comment. The whole crew thought that Beckett's death was a sore spot for Razor. They all knew that he had seen Beckett as father figure in years past. However, they were never told the full extent of Beckett's deceit when it came to Salen. Even Salen wasn't fully aware of how deep the lies ran and Razor intended to keep it that way.

Eventually they came to the Golden Dragon. It was a small bar that looked like it had living quarters on the second story. The building was squeezed in between the others almost as an after thought, as though there had once been an alley there.

"Stay out here." Razor ordered. "One man walking into a bar isn't going to cause anyone to notice, three men is always cause for concern."

"Three's a crowd, eh?"

"And then some. I'll check it out, if I think I can't drag the guy out myself I'll call you."

"What are the odds of that?" Cobalt huffed.

"Little to none." Ice chuckled.

"Just make sure you've got my back if something goes wrong."

"You know we do."

Razor nodded and went inside. Inside the bar was larger than Razor had expected, however it was mostly empty. There were a handful of people drinking themselves into comas. Razor acted casual as he made his way to the back where the liquor bar was. As he walked past the tables he noticed one with four men sitting at it, one of which was his target. Ignoring the man for the moment he continued to the bar.

The bartender was a beautiful young woman with jet black straight hair tucked behind her ears that fell down past her waist line. Her skin was a light brown, which didn't seem to match the rest of her features, although it added to her exotic look. She was busy cleaning glasses when Razor leaned against the bar and slung a charming smile across his face.

The woman looked up and gave a slight gasp. Her dark almond shaped eyes widened slightly and she stared at him. Razor found himself just as transfixed as she seemed to be. Eventually she was able to tear her eyes off his face and her glance darted to his cut ear. She opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

"You may be the first woman I've rendered speechless without me saying something stupid first." Razor chuckled.

"I...I'm sorry." She flushed. "I thought I recognized you."

"Do you?"

"No, Sir. What can I get you?"

"How about your name?"

"Gina."

"A name as beautiful as its owner." Razor purred.

"A charmer, maybe I do know you after all."

"By name or reputation."

"Reputation only. You're one of the men my Mother warmed me about."

"Guilty."

"So you know my name..." Gina trailed off with a smile.

"Ra..." Razor hesitated. "Sam, my name is Sam."

"Sam, I like that. Very honest."

"Well...I don't know about that." Razor chuckled.

"So what's your poison, Sam?"

"The strongest stuff you've got."

"Are you a cop?" Gina asked suddenly.

"A cop?" Razor repeated surprised. "Why? Do I look like a cop?"

"No, but you still haven't answered my question."

"Well I'm not a cop." Razor assured.

"In that case you can have a shot of our 'strongest stuff'."

Razor watched the bartender with a keen eye. She moved with an easy grace, and she certainly knew how to handle men. He noticed that she made sure that he got a glance down the front of her dress when she reached for the liquor bottle. He knew it was intentional because she looked up to make sure that his eyes were exactly where she wanted them to be. Razor winked at her and she returned the favor. She poured him a shot of bright blue liquid.

"Romulan Ale." Razor said impressed. He knocked back the drink. "I've got bad news for you."

"Oh?"

"Someone's been watering down your Ale with Candurian Rain Vodka."

"I'm impressed. You're the only one who as ever noticed, let alone picked out the spirit I cut it with."

"So it was you." Razor chuckled.

"It keeps my costs down."

"Speaking of costs." Razor reached into his pocket and pulled out another wad of cash and placed it on the bar.

"What's this for?"

"For the mess I'm probably about to make. Do me a favor. You see that guy over there." Razor glanced in his target's direction. "I'm about to drag him out of here, most likely against his will."

"He owe you money?"

"Not exactly."

"He owes me money."

"How much?"

"Five thousand."

"I'll give you ten for him." Razor said as he pulled out more bills.

"He's all yours, under one condition." Gina said with a coy smile.

"Condition?"

"You have to come back when you're done, have a drink with me."

"Sweetheart, I've already given you all my money." Razor smiled sadly. "I can't afford an evening with you."

"What?"

"I know a working girl when I see one."

"Fuck you." Gina hissed.

"I already told you I can't afford it."

"Then get out of my bar."

"Not without my man."

"Then I want that drink with you." Gina countered. "Just a drink, I'll even pay for it."

"You are persistent. I like that. Okay. Give me ten minutes." Razor agreed. "Perhaps you should go into the back and stock something, there may be some fireworks out here I wouldn't want you getting hurt."

Gina looked around nervously before nodding and retreating to the back. Razor watched her leave, he couldn't help but notice the extra swing in her hips that had nothing to do with walking from point A to point B. It took Razor a moment to bring his attention back to the game at hand.

Taking a deep breath to reset his mind Razor turned around and scanned the room. He knew his target was still there, he'd been keeping his ear on him while talking to Gina. The tree men with him didn't look like natives, but he didn't have orders to bring them in so they weren't his problem.

Razor reached over the bar and grabbed a large glass. Pressing on the tap he poured himself a beer. Drinking half of it he turned around and staggered towards the pack of men sitting around the table. Razor plunked himself down in an empty chair at the table and calmly took a long pull on his beer. The four men had fallen into a stunned silence and just stared at him.

"Can we help you?" One of the men growled menacingly.

"Not all of you. Just him." Razor pointed to his target. "I strongly suggest the rest of you leave."

"They're not going anywhere." The target said arrogantly. "I don't know you. What do you want?"

"I want you to come with me peacefully, but I'm willing to do whatever it takes to get you out of this seedy little bar."

"I see. And why exactly do you want me?"

"Cause you've been a bad little boy."

"What?"

"You didn't think that Starfleet was just going to let you kill an Officer and just skate off to some backwater planet to live out the rest of your life...did you?"

"There is no extradition law here. You can't touch me."

"Let's test that theory."

Razor lashed out at his target while at the same time he splashed the rest of his beer in the face of one of the other men and then threw the empty glass at one of the others. The target was so surprised that he didn't even put up a fight at first. When the fight broke out the target's three friends quickly abandoned him. When the target finally got his wits about him he tried to take a punch at Razor.

Razor snatched the target's wrist and twisted it around his back, bringing it close to breaking it. The target cried out in pain and started shouting and cursing. The other bar patrons had long since fled. Annoyed by man's screaming Razor grabbed a fist full of his hair and used the purchase to slam the target's face into the table hard enough to knock him out.

Grabbing the target by the back of his jacket collar Razor dragged him unceremoniously across the floor. Cobalt and Ice came in through the front doors. Razor dropped the target to the floor and stepped on his back like he was a trophy buck.

"Take him back to the Diamond." Razor ordered.

"You're not coming with us?"

"Someone owes me a drink..."


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen

When Razor stepped back into the bar Gina was looking at the broken glass and spilled drinks with her hands on her hips. She turned her attention to Razor and smiled. He walked over to her and inspected the damage himself.

"Sorry about that." Razor apologized.

"No worse than an average night." Gina shrugged. "However, I'm still keeping your money."

"That's fine, buy yourself something nice."

"I intend to." Gina chuckled. "So, how about that drink?"

"That's why I'm here."

"Come on, I know a place that serves some real Romulan Ale."

"Oh?"

"Yup."

Gina reached out and brushed her fingertips along the underside of Razor's jaw before turning around and walking back towards the bar. Razor followed her and smiled to himself when she lead him through the back door that lead to a set of stairs. Upstairs was Gina's studio apartment. It was as large as the bar downstairs, but the ample amount of large plush furniture made it feel cozy. She had set up carved wooden screens to form a few little rooms. The place look like a cross between an antique shop, and an art gallery, with a touch of bordello.

"Nice place." Razor said approvingly.

"I like it."

Gina continued weaving through her apartment until she came to the large leather couch that was set up in front of a large circular window that had a spoke frame. The window looked out on the neon lights and more traditionally lit lanterns that were strung across the street below. Outside a spattering of rain was starting to come down. Gina went over to a small wet bar and poured two glasses of Romulan Ale.

Razor made sure that they were both about to drink from the same container and before she got a chance to chose which glass was his he stepped up and took one at random. He watched Gina for a reaction, but she didn't seem to care which glass he took. Razor clinked his glass against hers and allowed her to take a quick sip before he did the same. Gina chuckled.

"You're a cautious one." Gina teased.

"One can never be too careful."

"Even around a defenseless beautiful woman?"

"No beautiful woman is ever truly defenseless."

"Well I'm not trying to drug you...yet."

"Yet?"

"You never know what the night will bring." Gina winked.

Razor laughed and shook his head ruefully. Gina went over and sat down on the dark leather couch, crossing her legs at the ankle like a true lady. Razor came over and sat down next to her. They enjoyed a comfortable silence for a few moments before Gina turned an accusing look on Razor.

"What?" Razor asked innocently.

"You lied to me, Sam."

"I did? When?"

"You told me you weren't a cop."

"I'm not a cop." Razor shrugged.

"I don't believe you."

"Why not?"

"You spend money like it's not yours, leading me to believe that it isn't. Plus you dragged Ripply out of my bar."

"I told you already, he owed me money."

"They why didn't you ask him for it?" Gina leaned in closer. "Who are you?"

"Does it really matter?"

Gina sat back and pretended to contemplate Razor's question. In the end she drained the rest of her Romulan Ale and encouraged Razor to do the same. Razor easily knocked back the rest of his highly alcoholic drink. Razor peacefully allowed Gina to take his glass away and she set it on floor. He chuckled as Gina took the initiative and straddled his lap. She reached up and ran her fingers through his hair before leaning in to give him a gentle kiss on the lips. She leaned back so that she put more of her weight on his hips.

"Do you treat all your new customers like this?" Razor teased.

"Just the handsome ones."

"Well they don't come much more handsome than me." Razor replied confidently.

"No they don't."

Becoming aggressive Gina locked Razor in a passionate kiss. She bit down on his lower lip to hold him captive. Razor put his hands on either side of her hips and returned the kiss. Gina started to kiss down Razor's neck and then bit down on his ear. Razor let her take the lead as she ran her hands down his chest. When she started to pull his shirt out of his pants Razor reached down and captured her wrists.

"Okay, that's enough." Razor said gently.

"Enough?" Gina asked confused.

"I appreciated the drink, and the bit of fun. However, I think it's about time we stop playing games."

"I'm not playing a game, Sam."

"Well you certainly didn't bring me up here just to have sex with me."

"How do you know that's not what I want?"

"Because that's not how women work." Razor smiled. "Now then, what do you really want with me?"

"Some guys have been giving me a hard time." Gina sighed. "I need help, you looked like the kind of guy who might be able to provide it for me."

"That sounds a little more likely. You know you could have just asked me to help."

"I figured that you'd be more in the mood to help if I did something for you first."

"Well...you do have a point. Tell me about these men."

"It's not just me they hassle, it's every business in this area."

"I know this racket, you pay them to 'protect' you from them."

"Basically." Gina sighed.

"Tell me where I can find them and I'll go make sure it doesn't happen again."

Razor lifted Gina up off his lap and set her down on the couch. He got to his feet and started to head towards the door. Gina jumped up off the couch and got in front of him to stop him. She put her hands on his chest.

"Wait, you're going now?"

"I'm really not supposed to be taking side jobs, so I need to get this done quickly so I can get back."

"Back where."

"Just back, that's all you need to know."

"So mysterious." Gina mocked as she stepped in closer and pressed her body against his. "I can't let you just deal with these guys for me without giving you something in return. Wherever you need to get 'back to' can do without you for just a little while longer."

"You don't need to sell yourself to me."

"I'm not." Gina smiled. "You know you're starting to hurt my feelings, I've never had to work this hard to talk a man into my bed."

"I'm sure you haven't." Razor chuckled.

"Please, stay. I swear you won't regret it."

"You drive a hard bargain." Razor smiled.

"Is that a yes?"

"Yes."

Gina put her arms around Razor's neck and tilted her head back to invite him to kiss her. Razor took the invitation and leaned in to taste her lips. Razor ran his hands down her back and grabbed a handful of her backside. Gina reacted positively and pressed herself harder against him before pushing his leather jacket off his shoulders and letting it slip to the floor. Razor suddenly lifted Gina up off her feet and went to carry her. He looked around the cluttered apartment.

"Uh..."

"My bed is behind that screen with the birds carved in it."

"Thanks."

Razor carefully carried Gina over towards the black wooden screen that was carved with sparrows in a cherry tree. Behind the screen was a large bed that was covered in a thick red comforter that held an intricate golden pattern weaved into it. Gina wiggled out of his arms and guided him to sit on the edge of the bed. After an extended kiss she took a few steps back.

"Are you sure about this?" Razor asked concerned.

"You're such a gentleman, Sam." Gina purred.

"I try."

Gina laughed musically and reached down to pull her shirt off. Gracefully sliding out of her tight fitting pants she revealed a matching set of black lace panties and bra. She reached up and tousled her long hair. Razor ran his eyes over her mocha skin with a grin of approval.

"If I didn't know any better I'd say you were expecting to impress someone tonight." Razor teased.

"One can never know, so it's best to always be prepared."

"Words to live by." Razor nodded.

Gina stepped up and pulled off Razor's shirt, exposing his uniform. Gina furrowed her brow as she ran her fingers over the odd material. She traced the definition of his muscles that were accented by the tight fit of the phaser uniform. Coming to his embroidered name tag she studied it.

"'Razor'?" Gina read.

"That's what my friend's call me."

"Why?"

"That's a long story."

"How do you take this off?" Gina inspected around his collar looking for the seam.

"That's actually a bit of a trade secret."

"What do you mean?"

"Turn around."

"Why?"

"I can't allow you to see how it's done." Razor explained.

"I don't understand."

"This material is...special. I have orders to protect it with my life."

"How could any cloth be more valuable than a man's life?"

"That's also a secret."

"You are a mysterious creature, Sam." Gina chuckled. "Would you have to kill me if I learned the secret of your shirt?"

"Yes."

"I can't tell if you're kidding or not, so I guess I'll turn around."

Gina made a big show of turning around. Razor took a quick look around for any mirrors that she may be able to see him in, but there were no mirrors in the partitioned room. He reached up to slip his fingers into the collar to touch the biometric contacts. Only the fingerprint of a Diamond Dog could release the clasp.

Razor was just about to press down on the contact when something caught his eye. Taking his hand away from his throat Razor reached out and pushed Gina's waist long onyx hair away from her shoulder. He gasped audibly when he caught sight of a very familiar tattoo. The artist had done a much more delicate job on her, but the design was the same double moutain tops with a sunrise.

"Sam? What's wrong? Can I turn around now?"

"Where did you get that tattoo?" Razor demanded.

"Tattoo?" Gina asked as though she had forgotten about it.

"Yes, the tattoo on your shoulder, what does it mean?"

"Nothing, it's just a design."

"Don't lie to me!" Razor snarled. "Who do you work for?"

"I don't work for anyon..." Gina was interrupted as Razor grabbed her upper arm and forced her around to face him. "Sam! You're hurting me!"

"I'll give you far more than a bruised arm if you don't start talking!"

"Let me go!"

Baring his teeth in sudden rage Razor reached up with his free hand and grabbed a fist full of Gina's hair. He jerked her head back as he drover her back against a large wooden dresser that was behind her. Gina yelped in fear, she tried to push Razor away, but she had no chance against his strength.

"Sam! Please, I don't know what you want!"

"Why did you really ask me up here?"

"I already told you." Gina whimpered.

"Stop lying, I barely believe your story the first time around and I certainly don't buy it now. A Starship is in pieces, good men are dead, my best friend's wife was almost killed, and that tattoo has something to do with it!"

Gina broke into tears and struggled once again to free herself. Razor wasn't moved by her tears, he didn't care if they were real or forced. He started to increase his grip on her delicate arm, digging his fingers into her flesh.

"Stop!" Gina cried. "Please, let me go!"

"Not until you tell me what's going on."

"It's North! North wants you!" Gina confessed. "I don't know why, I swear."

"Who the fuck is North?"

"I can't tell you that, he'll kill me..."

"I'll kill you."

"No you won't." Gina whispered.

Razor narrowed his eyes and ground his teeth together. Sighing in frustration he released his captive by shoving her to the floor. Staying on the floor she scrambled away from him, cradling her injured arm against her chest. Razor paced back and forth for a moment as he tried to figure out his next move. Eventually he walked over to Gina and grabbed her wrist to haul her to her feet.

"This isn't over." Razor hissed. "You're coming with me."

"No!" Gina cried in panic. "Sam, I'm sorry! Please!"

"You tell me about this 'North' and how he knows me and we'll protect you from him."

"You can't protect me from Nor..."

Gina stopped as there was a sharp cracking sound at the door. Razor noticed that she suddenly relaxed. He swore under his breath, she had called someone to come get him. She had probably called them the moment she reconized him in the bar. She had been stalling him with drinks and sex. Razor forced her back into the corner as six men stormed into the apartment.

Razor's first instinct was always to fight and now was no exception. He grabbed the first guy that rushed him and threw him into the wooden screen which shattered as he slammed into it. The next man had a phaser and fired a shot into Razor's chest. Razor smiled as the phaser suit absorbed the paralyzing bolt.

"You're going to have to do better than that if you think you're going to bring me down." Razor put himself in a fighting stance and motioned for them to come closer. "Come on, you want a fight, I'll give you on..."

Razor was knocked down by a powerful flash of pain to the back of his head. He had not even considered Gina to be a physical threat, however she had collected herself and grabbed an iron floor lamp. Taken off guard Razor was dazed, but not out. As he went to get back to his feet the men took the opportunity to swarm him. Pinned to the floor Razor managed to reach up to his collar and turned on his built in communicator. He knew one person that would be listening and he would only need one word to bring him running.

"Salen! Help!"


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter twenty

"How are you feeling?"

"I realize that you are now Chief Medical Officer aboard the Diamond, but I must ask you to refrain from asking me that question. If I am in medical distress I will seek your advice."

"I'm sorry, Salen."

"Do not apologize. If you are going to serve on this ship you must appear strong at all times."

"There's no one else here." Joanna as her new male alter ego gestured around the empty sick bay.

"It would be good practice for us both to act as though there are others present at all times."

"Yes, Sir." Joanna said seriously. "Why did you come to Medical?"

"The planet below is known for its provisions. If there is anything you wish for your Surgery that is not aboard now would be an excellent time to purchase it."

"The Diamond has a state of the art Sick Bay." Joanna said approvingly. "However, I would like a spectral neurochemical recomposit machine."

"What is that?"

"Well for one thing it is really expensive."

"Expense is no issue aboard the Diamond." Salen assured.

"Then I would like one."

"You have still not told me what it does."

"It is used in the production of drugs. I could use it to redesign the Vuladin and hopefully find something that is less lethal."

"I am sure the original creators of Vuladin had such technology, and they were unable to produce a less toxic form."

"They were trying to treat something different. Please."

"Can this machine do anything that will also benefit the humans aboard?"

"With the right ingredients the recomposit can make any drug in the Federation Database. If a new or rare disease breaks out on the Diamond it could save the entire crew."

"In that case I will attempt to find one."

"Just ask for a recomp, anyone who is really selling one will know what you mean."

Salen nodded and headed back to the bridge. Once there he asked Tyger and Steel to report to the bridge. He relayed the information about the recomp to them and asked them to travel to the planet to purchase one. Tyger was well known for his love of technology and he instantly knew what Salen was talking about.

"You know with a touch of reengineering you can get a recomp to make a liquor that puts Romulan Ale to shame in its ability to knock you on your ass." Tyger smiled.

"I do not believe the new CMO has alcohol in mind." Salen replied.

"What's he like, anyway?" Tyger asked. "I haven't met him yet."

"I do not know much about him myself." Salen lied.

'Diamond?' Cobalt's voice came over the intercom.

"We are here, Cobalt." Salen answered.

'We've got our man, and we're ready to come home.'

"Transport, did you hear that?"

'Yes, Sir.' The transport tech replied.

"Bring them home."

'Aye, Sir.'

"How do you like being second in command, Dingo?" Tyger asked.

"I can understand why Flash did not wish to have the job."

"Amen." Flash added from his place at the helm.

Tyger and Steel both chuckled and headed down towards transport on their shopping mission. Salen sent a message to General Kinler back at Starfleet Command to let them know the mission had gone well so far. Salen handed command of the bridge back over to Flash and headed down to transport to greet Razor.

When Salen arrived at transport Cobalt and Ice had just handed over their captive and were heading towards the ajoining locker room to change. Salen followed them into the locker room. Cobalt and Ice were chatting with one another about some beautiful woman that they had seen when Salen arrived.

"Where is Razor?" Salen asked.

"He stayed behind for a 'drink'." Cobalt chuckled.

"I have come to learn that when a human uses that tone that they do not mean what they have just said."

"Razor met a girl and he stayed behind to see if he could talk her into sleeping with him." Cobalt clarified.

"Knowing his silver tongue I'm sure he'll succeed." Ice laughed.

"Once again, by 'sleeping' I assume you are referring to sex?" Salen asked.

"Well Razor certainly didn't stay behind because he was tired." Cobalt smiled as he pulled off his phaser suit. "Don't worry, Dingo, he'll be back in an hour."

"It will take an hour, but he won't be back for two." Ice teased. "No Dog returns right after so that they can brag later that they lasted longer."

"I do not understand this conversation." Salen said flatly. "However, I find it unacceptable that you allowed him to stay behind alone."

"He's Colonel now, Salen. We didn't leave him behind, he ordered us away." Cobalt explained. "Don't worry, Razor can take care of himself."

Salen gave them a doubtful expression before looking back towards the transport room.

"Salen," Cobalt said seriously "if you go down to that planet and interrupt Razor he will kick your ass. I don't know if you've noticed, but there aren't many ladies aboard this ship and Razor refuses to join us when we take Shore Leave on planets with legal prostitution. So when he comes across a willing piece of tail it's best to just back off."

"Tail?" Salen repeated confused.

Cobalt and Ice exchanged an amused glance with one another and shook their heads sadly. Salen decided against seeking further clarification and just resigned to the fact that they were probably right. Razor could keep himself out of trouble for an hour or two. The planet below was not a rough or unsafe one, just outside Federation territory.

Still feeling a little uneasy Salen retreated to his quarters. He wanted to go see Joanna again, but he knew that if he spent all his time in Sick Bay that the men would quickly start to talk. One of the disadvantages of being higher in the ranks of command was the fact that the rest of the crew kept a closer eye on you. The mood of the Commanding Officers was an important factor in the lives of any crew.

Salen did not want to be seen pacing for the hour or two that it was going to take for Razor to return to the ship. In the confines of his quarters Salen paced in peace. After a while Salen decided that hiding wasn't really a good solution either and went to return to the bridge. Flash was still sitting at the helm.

"Anything to report, Flash?"

"Nope. I'm just running some basic diagnostic tests, but the Diamond is passing them all with flying colors. As always."

"You keep her in excellent shape."

"She's my baby." Flash purred. "So...I hear Razor is getting some tail."

"He really needs to learn to conduct himself more like an Officer." Salen sighed.

"He's new to it, not to mention young." Flash shrugged. "On a normal Starship he'd probably be court martialed for this sort of thing, but here on the Diamond he'll actually gain more respect from the men."

"I have never understood why humans see engaging in sex as some form of accomplishment."

"It takes a lot of hard work and skill to talk a woman into it. I can't imagine Vulcan women are easy to get."

"In traditional Vulcan culture a female had the right to force men into a fight to the death to win her favor."

"Wow, harsh." Flash chuckled. "I know you're married to a human, but have you ever been with a Vulcan woman?"

"I do not wish to discuss it."

"I'll take that as a 'yes'."

Salen shifted his weight uncomfortably, wondering how he had gotten himself into this particular conversation. He was just about to change the subject when the communicator in his ear screeched to life.

'Salen! Help!'

The desperate call had been so unexpected that Salen jerked back hard enough to lose his balance. Since the signal went directly into his auditory center Salen was the only one who could hear it. Flash had shouted in alarm when Salen had apparently collapsed for no reason and jumped to his feet.

"Razor!" Salen shouted in reply. "Razor, what's happening?"

"Salen?" Flash asked concerned. "Are you alright? What's going on?"

There had been no answer from Razor and no time to explain it to Flash. Salen scrambled to his feet and dashed down the hallway. Despite his name Flash had no hope of catching up with Salen. When he got to the transport room Cobalt and Ice were just coming out of the locker room, having showered and chanced into their normal uniform. Salen slammed the last coordinates from Cobalt and Ice into the transport machine to beam down to Razor's aid.

"Salen? What's going on?"

"Razor's in trouble." Salen said as he hopped onto the transporter pad.

"Wha..."

Whatever Cobalt had to say was cut off by the transporter activating. Salen found himself outside a closed bar. He broke in the front door and raced into the building. He had to stop for a moment to get his bearings. Salen could hear a fight going on upstairs and ran towards the stairs in the back. Getting to the closed door at the top of the stairs Salen could hear Razor roaring in fury as he battled his attackers.

Throwing his shoulder into the door Salen easily broke it down. Of the six men who had initially attacked Razor only four of them were still standing. Right now two of them were pinning his arms behind his back while the others tried to figure out a way to render him unconscious without killing him. Salen only took one step into the cluttered room before he was noticed.

"The Vulcan!" One of the men cried in surprise. "Kill him!"

"No!" Razor roared.

Salen put his hand on his hip to retrieve his phaser only to realize that he wasn't wearing it. Unconcerned he charged towards the men. Salen didn't even think to fear the phaser that was aimed at his chest. The weapon went off, but Salen continued his charge. Reaching his target Salen lashed out and easily broke his neck.

"Salen!"

It wasn't until Razor cried out in alarm that Salen even began to feel the lancing pain in his chest. The three remaining attackers were staring at Salen in shock and for a moment the fight came to a stand still. Salen looked down and found that bright green was pouring down the front of his uniform. Without the phaser suit the blast had ripped through his chest where a human heart would be.

Enraged Razor broke free and rushed directly to Salen. He pressed his hand to Salen's chest to slow the bleeding as his friend dropped to his knees. There was more commotion as Cobalt and Ice arrived. A volley of phaser fire rang out and there were shouts of alarm and pain on both sides. With his vision beginning to fail Salen wasn't sure what was happening. The air temperature seemed to be dropping fast.

"Razor?"

"Salen, stay with m..."

Razor was cut off as his eyes suddenly rolled back to white. Salen tried to catch him as he fell, but he was having too much trouble keeping on his own knees to prevent Razor from falling. In the end they both collapsed to the hard wood floor. With the last of his strength Salen looked up at their attacker.

A beautiful woman with a phaser in her hand looked down on them sadly. It was clear that she had pressed the weapon against the back of Razor's neck with the setting on stun to bring him down, a shot that could still kill. Salen could hear that Razor was still breathing, but he'd be unconcious for hours after a shot like the one he'd taken. She ordered the last of the men to drag Razor away. Salen tried to stop them, but it only increased the speed at which he was loosing blood.

Struggling for breath Salen brought his hand up to his chest and weakly pressed it against the devastating wound. The woman watched him for a moment before switching her phaser to 'kill'. Salen watched helplessly as she aimed the weapon between his eyes. He tried to speak, but emerald blood choked him and oozed from his parted lips. Tears streaked down the woman's cheeks as she hesitated to pull the trigger.

"I'm sorry..."

Salen closed his eyes and braced himself for the killing blow. The woman stood over him for a brief moment before sighing heavily and walking away. Salen tried to open his eyes once more, but when he did everything was becoming black anyway. With the last of his strength he took his hand away from his chest to reach up to the jewel behind his ear. Although he was always connected to Razor's communicator he had to press against the gem to switch to the Diamond's system. He managed to touch the stone like implant, but it left him breathless.

"Dia...Diamond...Joanna...Jo..." 


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter Twenty-one

"Play nice with your new friends, Donavan. Don't get yourself killed, it makes for a shitload of paperwork."

Back in memories of his past Sam looked around his new 'home'. The mining prison planet not only had an oppressive smell to it, but a heat and humidity that could rival any jungle. It was late at night, but the clock on the wall was the only way Sam knew that. The lights never changed in the working area of the mine. The men worked in shifts and the work never stopped for something as trivial as the sun above ground setting.

"Move it, Kid." A gruff voice snarled.

Sam went to turn to face the voice but was shoved violently from behind. He stumbled forward, nearly falling to the dusty floor. The man had pushed him in the direction of the foreman who was already approaching. The foreman looked Sam over and rolled his eyes in disgust.

"If you're going to survive here, you have to have a job and you need to do it well." The foreman announced. "Do you have any machinist skills?"

"No."

"Technical or mechanical experience?"

"I...I don't even have a driver's license." Sam admitted.

"How old are you?" The foreman demanded.

"Seventeen."

"I see." The foreman sighed. "Well what were you planing to do with your life before you fucked it up."

"I hadn't thought that far ahead."

"Which is why you're here. Sorry, Kid, without any skills the only thing you're good for is manual labor. Head to the end of tunnel 527, you'll find some guys working down there. Do what they do."

"Yes, Sir."

"If anyone yells 'pocket' make sure you pick a good direction to run in."

"What does 'pocket' mean?"

"It means someone hit a tilithium gas pocket, deadly poisonous, melt the skin right off your face."

"How will I know what direction to run?"

"It will be the heading that gets you as far from the guy that yelled 'pocket' as quickly as possible."

Sam looked around nervously before nodding and heading off for the tunnel that the foreman had assigned him to. The men at the tunnel were using pick axe like devices to pry dilithum crystals away from the rock face of the tunnel. In their unrefined form the crystals weighted up to several hundred pounds each. Since the crystal was so reactive to any form of heat or electricity they needed to be removed by hand rather than machine.

Ten hours of working with the crystals later Sam barely had the strength to remain standing. He continued to try to keep up with the others, but his body came to a point where it simply couldn't perform. Sam collapsed to the ground, choking for breath on the crystal dust he'd landed in. Someone grabbed the back of the neck of his shirt and tried to haul him to his feet.

"Come on, Kid, you can't breath that shit in. Get up."

Unable to get out of the toxic dust on his own the large man dragged Sam away from the work area where the floor was cleaner before dropping him once again. Sam ground his teeth together and fought to stand. Getting as far as his knees Sam bowed his head in defeat, unable to stand. Someone brought over a metal cup with water in it and gave it to the man that had scraped Sam up off the floor. In turn the muscular man offered it to Sam. Sam was hesitant at first, he had expected to be thrashed within an inch of his life for failing to keep working, not to be offered help.

"Drink it."

Sam's hand trembled uncontrollably as he reached out for the water. He drank the offering, nearly gagging on the metallic taste.

"You get used to the taste in time." The man chuckled. "Can you stand now?"

"No..." Sam replied weakly. "I'm sorry..."

"Sorry? Kid, I've never seen anyone work ten solid hours on their first day. I'm impressed, and a little pissed."

"Pissed?"

"I had bet Destin that you wouldn't last more than three hours."

"Sorry to disappoint." Sam said and managed a slight smile.

"I'm pleased to be disappointed, you'll make a good addition to my team. The higher our production rate the more privileges we get."

"Team?"

"No one survives their time here without friends, work groups tend to band together. The only other option for someone like you for getting protection is to become one of the stronger gangs willing bitches."

"I don't like the sound of that..."

"Then take my advice and beat the living daylights out of the first asshole who tried to touch you."

"Good advice."

"My name's Rigger."

"Sam."

"Good to meet you, Sam. I need to get back to work. Take a break, Sam, I won't tell the Warden."

Sam watched as Rigger went back over to where the others were still hard at work. The others greeted Rigger back with a nod of respect. Several of them glanced over at Sam before asking Rigger something that Sam couldn't hear. Whatever they had asked Rigger looked over at Sam and smiled brightly. Feeling stronger Sam battled to his feet and walked back over to the rock face and lifted up the heavy pry bar that had previously fallen from his hands.

"Back for more already, eh?" Rigger teased.

"I got nothing better to do." Sam chuckled.

"Good attitude to have."

Sam smiled at the approval of the older team leader. He wasn't sure how he managed, but Sam made it through the last two hours of the shift. With the work shift officially done Rigger took the time to introduce Sam to the others. After meeting the others Sam furrowed his brow.

"Everyone has such odd names around here."

"Their nicknames, not our real names. You'll get one of your own after a while."

Rigger told Sam that he should go check back in with the foreman to see if he could become permanently assigned to the 527. Sam nodded and went off in search of the foreman while Rigger sought out a shower. Still not sure how to navigate underground Sam quickly became lost. He accidentally wandered into a commons room and found a group of men playing some form of card game.

"Excuse me...I...uh...I'm sort of lost."

"You most certainly are." The apparent leader of the group purred. "You're new here."

It wasn't a question so Sam didn't answer. He became nervous when he noticed that one of the men had flanked him and stood in the doorway to block his escape. The dark haired leader got to his feet and walked up to Sam, looking him over with a sly smile. Sam looked for another exit, but he was pinned in. He decided the best move would be to show no fear and stood his ground when the larger man stepped up to him.

"My name's Shiv. You've got a few options, Kid. I can tell you right now that half the population of this hell hole is going to fuck you. We don't get nice young tail around here very often. You were lucky to stumble in here, my friends and I are lot more gentle than most of the others..."

"If you're about to offer me what I think you are going to offer let's get one thing straight right away: I'd rather fight tooth and nail and lose than willingly suck your cock." Sam snarled.

"Suit yourself, you'll be screaming either way. Are you sure you'd rather have it rough?"

In response Sam launched for Shiv and slammed his fist into the bridge of his nose. It was clear that the larger man had not expected his young victim to actually attack him. Rather than wait to see if one punch was going to be enough to drive his point home Sam whipped around and kicked him in the chest. Shiv roared in rage and swung at Sam, lighter and more agile Sam was able to duck and ran shoulder first into Shiv's stomach.

The other men in the room cheered and laughed as Sam attacked Shiv with unexpected violence. Sam knew that this one fight could easily determine his future in the prison mine and pure adrenaline drove him. Sam absorbed a few blows, but having been taken by surprise Shiv spent most of his energy in defensive moves. It wasn't long before Sam managed to beat Shiv unconscious.

When Sam felt another hand on his shoulder he twisted around and automatically attack the new comer. The other man had not actually been trying to start a fight, he was just trying to pull Sam off his prey. The lighthearted mood of the brawl changed when they realized that they had a true threat on their hands.

One of the men called for the guards, knowing that Sam would be the one to pay the price for starting a fight. The instant Sam saw the guards he released the second man that he had beaten bloody. The guard stormed up and despite the fact that Sam was on his knees with his hands held up submissively the guard still swung a night stick hard against his temple.

With a flash of pain Sam was instantly knocked unconscious. He wasn't sure how long it was before woke. Sam moaned pitifully as he began to wake. A bucket of cold water suddenly hit him in the chest and jolted him awake. Panicking he pulled at his wrists which were restrained above his head. He managed to get his feet under himself and stood on his tip toes to keep the pressure off his wrists.

"First day and you're already causing trouble." A paternal voice sighed.

"I'm sorry." Sam said honestly.

"It's alright." The Warden shrugged. "Best that you learn how things work around here quickly. Anytime you win a fight you're going to find yourself right back here. I punish the winners because it's impossible to tell who starts these fights and the loser has already been punished by the humiliation of losing. It saves time to just deal with the winner."

"I was defending myself."

"I know what you were doing, but I don't care. Fights look bad on my record and I want you to think twice before getting involved in another one."

"Yes, Sir."

Panting for breath from a combination of fear and exhaustion Sam took a quick look around. He was in a small room that had what looked like wall safe. He was being kept nearly off the ground by a metal frame that was bolted to the stone ground, ion restraints held his wrists and looking down he discovered that similar restraints were wrapped around his ankles to keep him from kicking.

Sam looked up sharply as Guard Reilly rushed into the room. He looked at Sam with a worried expression that made Sam even more nervous than he already was. The Warden looked over at Reilly calmly before turning his attention to the wall safe.

"Warden, give the kid a break." Reilly said.

"Showing leniency right out of the gate isn't how you train prisoners to behave."

"Donavan worked twelve solid hours today, Rigger's team mined a full twenty percent more crystal today than any other time."

"That doesn't change the fact that he nearly killed two other prisoners."

"Please, Warden."

"Shut up, Reilly."

Reilly sighed heavily and gave Sam an apologetic look. Sam gave him a small nod of thanks for at least trying. The Warden didn't notice, he was busy opening the safe. He brought out a small hand held device that resembled a phaser with a blunt muzzle. Sam held his breath in anticipation as the Warder came up to him with a sadistic smile on his face.

When the cold contact of the device first touched his skin nothing happened. When the Warden pulled the trigger there was a small clicking sound that was followed by an explosion of pain. Sam gasped so violently that he lost his ability to scream for a moment. When he did find his voice he cried out shrilly as the powerful agony escalated. Sam nearly dislocated his own shoulders as he jerked against the restraints.

The Warden pulled away and the torment instantly stopped. Unable to keep on his toes Sam hung from his wrists. Shivering from the aftermath of the weapon he did his best to keep from weeping. The Warden watched him for a moment, impressed by Sam's control. Most other inmates had cried like babies and begged for their mother's when first encountering this punishment.

"The inmates call this device The Razor, because it cuts through anyone no matter how strong they think they are."

Sam didn't know at the time that one day he would earn the same name as the torture device. His first fight with Shiv was going to be far from his last, and Shiv was not going to be the only challenger that was going to cross his path. Even with Rigger's help there was nothing that could protect Sam from the nearly daily fights he was going to get into. He wasn't going to win them all, but he'd come out on top enough times to earn him more time with The Razor than any other inmate.

"You'll spend the night hanging here, thinking about your life choices."

"Warden, no, please." Reilly begged one more. "Donavan worked hard today, not to mention fought well. It's been a tough enough day for him, keep him up all night and he'll be dead by the middle of his next shift."

"I doubt anyone is going to let him sleep tonight anyway." The Warden chuckled.

"At least give him a chance."

"Fine. Take him down."

With Reilly's help Sam was able to remain standing when the restraints were turned off. Sam only made it a few steps before doubling over and dry heaving violently. Reilly gave Sam a moment before leading him on. Nearly unconscious Sam just allowed himself to be lead away. Reilly brought him over to one of the elevators.

"Where are we going?" Sam asked.

"I'm going to let you sleep in my office tonight. I have the feeling that if I don't you'll be killed by morning."

"Why are you helping me?"

"Because I think you deserve it."

"Don't waste your time with me...I'm not going to survive."

"You made some powerful enemies today, but you made even more friends."

Back in the present Razor woke slowly from his dream about the past. His head was throbbing painfully from the phaser blast he'd taken. He groaned as his headache became worse. He was sitting up in a chair with his head resting on his chest. Razor lifted up his head, trailing some drool. Opening his eyes he was surprised to find himself in what looked like an expensive hotel room. The window against the far wall had the blue glow of a ship racing at Warp speed, adding to his confusion.

When Gina walked out of the bathroom Razor went to jump to his feet and rush at her. He quickly discovered that his wrists were tied to the arms of the chair. Gina watched him apprehensively as he tested the strength of his bindings. Unable to free himself Razor barred his teeth at his captor aggressively.

"Whore!" Razor screamed.

"Sam, please, keep quiet..." Gina said nervously. "I...I don't want to have to gag you."

"Come over here and try it." Razor growled.

Gina looked around even though there was no one else around. When she came closer he prepared to lash out and kick her. He tested his legs and was enraged to find that his ankles were also restrained. Razor fought for a moment before bowing his head in defeat.

"Sam?" Gina asked as she hesitantly came closer. "I'm sorry, I don't have a choice. North..."

"I don't care about North, I don't care about you, I don't care about myself. Salen, what happened to Salen?"

"I...I don't know who that..."

"The Vulcan!" Razor snapped. "The one you left drowning in his own blood! Did you put him out of his misery or did you let him suffer like an unwanted dog?"

"He..he didn't suffer long." Gina lied.

Razor closed his eyes as tears slipped down his face. Gina reached out to touch Razor, but he jerked away as best he could. He glared up at her spitefully.

"I hope you're proud of yourself!" Razor spat

"Sam, I'm sorry. There's nothing I could have done. The Vulcan had a contact out on his life. North wanted him dead, it was only a matter of time. If I didn't kill him, someone else would have."

"But it was you." Sam whispered. "And you used me to get to him."

"Sam..."

"In one shot you've killed a member of an endangered species, a loving husband, a new father, a man's only son, one of Starfleet's finest ...and my best friend." 


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter Twenty-three

Unaware that Salen had made an emergency trip down to the planet Joanna wandered around the empty Sick Bay making a mental inventory of where everything was. Things were set up a little differently here than on the Intrepid. In her old infirmary everything was organized to deal mainly with illness, here it was clear that injury was what they mostly dealt with. It was just little adjustments, but it gave her a good idea of what she was in for.

Joanna jolted in surprised when she suddenly discovered she had company. It took her a moment to realize that the 'stranger' in the room was actually her 'male' reflection. Walking over to the full length mirror Joanna looked herself over for a moment. The illusion was approximately her height and slight of build. She was fascinated by the eyes, they looked so much like her own. After closer inspection she decided that there was no illusion covering her eyes, it really was her looking out.

"Bored, Doc?" A deep voice chuckled.

Joanna jumped as the sudden voice startled her. Turning around she found Toby leaning against the doorway. He smiled brightly at her.

"Can I help you?" Joanna asked.

"Not really." Toby shrugged. "I just thought I'd say 'hi'. Name's Toby, but if you hear anyone mention 'Pariah' that's me too."

"Pariah?"

"Long story."

"I'm John." Joanna lied.

"Nice to meet you. So you might want to find yourself a good hobby."

"Hobby?"

"The Dogs don't tend to seek medical help. Usually by the time they do they are so sick there tends to be nothing you can do for them, or they arrive dead already. Just about the only real customers you'll get will be from me."

"From you?"

"Yeah, and for the most part no one cares if they live or die. I'm the ship's interrogator."

"That explains the 'Pariah' nickname."

"You're a sharp one." Toby chuckled. "I take it the fact that I routinely break the Hippocratic Oath doesn't bother you."

"That oath only applies to medical doctors."

"Well, I'm one of those too." Toby shrugged.

"If there is so little to do why aren't you CMO as well as 'interrogator'?"

"I used to be, but I found that I had trouble treating patients with...a gentle hand."

Joanna furrowed her brow trying to decide if Toby was joking or not. He watched her with an unreadable expression. Starting to fear that this was going to turn into an interrogation in its own right Joanna looked around for an excuse to end the conversation.

"Don't worry, I'm not trying to interrogate you." Toby winked.

"I'm sorry, I..." Joanna flushed.

"It's okay, I'm used to it. No one ever really wants to keep the company of a torturer. Another reason I gave up the CMO position."

"I was ju..."

Joanna stopped as an alarm tore through the air. Toby pushed himself away from the wall and ran over to the intercom.

"Bridge, what's going on?" Toby demanded.

"Emergency code just came up from the planet," Flash announced "I was just about to alert Sick Bay to incoming injuries."

"I'm in Sick Bay with the new Doc, so we are alerted. Who's injured and how badly?"

"I don't have that information."

"Where's Salen? Isn't he in charge with Razor on mission?"

"Salen raised the alarm, he went down there with Cobalt and Ice hot on his tail. I don't really know what happened, he just suddenly made a mad dash for the planet."

"What?" Joanna exclaimed. "Is he hurt?"

"Don't know. I've got Tyger and Steel leading Delta Group on rescue. Stand by for patients, four men are on world so there is a chance all four are incoming injured."

"Get them up here quick." Toby barked before turning to Joanna. "We don't have proper nurses on board, but the alarm will bring our three paramedic trained men...here they are now. Sorry about taking over with the intercom, all orders are yours to give from this point on."

Joanna looked over the three young men who had arrived.

"Since we don't know the nature of the emergency we should assume that its phaser wounds or other physical trauma, get me four hemo kits and warm up any blood you've got on ice."

"Aye, Sir." The three paramedics chimed and sprung into action.

"Doc," Toby said "I haven't done surgery in years, but I'll do what I can."

"It's like riding a bicycle, Toby." Joanna assured.

Joanna started to pace between the four surgery tables that were being prepped. She lent a hand with supplied and organization. Her stomach was twisting into a painful knot at the thought that Salen might be among the injured. Joanna took a deep breath to calm herself. She had to be thinking clearly and push emotion aside if she was going to be of use to anyone right now.

Everything had just been set up when the away team was hauled into the Sick Bay. Joanna gasped in horror before she could compose herself. Cobalt had his partner Ice in his arms and rushed him over to one of the tables. Ice was awake with his arms wrapped around his abdomen. He arched his back as he coughed up a large amount of blood. One of the paramedics instantly worked to suction the blood from his throat before he drown in it. Cobalt himself was bleeding heavily from a shot that had gone through his shoulder, but he acted as if he didn't even notice.

Joanna found herself frozen in place as Tyger stepped into the infirmary carrying Salen. Unlike Ice Salen was unconscious, almost peaceful looking. The front of his uniform was ruined and dripping in green blood. Despite having been shot through the chest he only had a small trail of blood escaping his lips. Joanna automatically went to his side when Tyger laid him down on the table. One of the paramedics put a compression gauze against Salen's chest to slow the bleeding. Joanna noted that Salen's usually green scars were faded almost to white as his body shut down blood flow to his skin, however his lips had not taken on a rusty hue yet that would indicate true hypoxia.

"Doc, what do we do?" The paramedic asked.

"Toby, is there any Vulcan blood in storage?"

"Uh...not that I know of. I think I recall Salen and Razor having an argument about that. Razor wanted him to donate some for storage, Salen refused."

"Damn it, Salen." Joanna snarled. "Your blood phobia is going to be the death of you."

Toby glanced up at Joanna in surprise for a moment before returning his attention to Salen. Joanna looked over at Ice and was forced into a difficult decision.

"Toby...I need you to work on Salen."

"Doc, I think Salen's condition is worse, at least Ice is still awake. Your the CMO, you should take the more dire case..."

"No." Joanna shook her head. "Salen has simply gone into mental shut down to protect himself, it's a Vulcan trick. As a human Ice is the one in more danger, I will attend to him."

"What should I do, I've never worked on a Vulcan before."

"Just fill him with saline and stop the arterial bleeding. Vulcans are tough as nails and can lose nearly fifty percent of their blood volume before succumbing to shock."

"I'll do everything I can keep it from coming to that."

"Thank you."

Joanna reached out and briefly touched Salen's cheek before forcing herself to turn around and devoting her full attention to Ice. Joanna barked orders to have Ice put under anesthesia so that they could even begin work on him. Once he was out she was able to pull his hands away from his stomach. She tore open his shirt to reveal two phaser wounds gushing blood in his upper abdomen.

"Oh God, James..." Cobalt used Ice's birth name as he stared at the damage. "Don't you dare die on me."

"What's your name?" Joanna asked as she prepped Ice's stomach.

"Cobalt."

"Cobalt, I need you to let one of the paramedics wrap your shoulder before your own blood loss becomes critical and I have to deal with three emergencies rather than two."

"I'm fine."

Joanna wanted to argue, but she didn't have time. Working against the tide of blood Joanna gave orders to start transfusions as she dove into the wound to try to repair the damage. She could hear Toby suddenly swear under his breath, but she couldn't afford to look over her shoulder to see what was happening with her husband.

Despite the massive transfusion Joanna's patient wasn't stabilizing. She was forced to open the lower of the two wounds further to see what was happening. Discovering that his blood rich spleen was perforated she started the difficult process of removing it before it could drain him. Tears slipped down Cobalt's face as he watched Ice fighting to keep breathing.

After twenty minutes Joanna finally had the worse of the splenic bleeding under control by simply removing the organ. He could live without it. As she started to close the arteries the monitor over head began beeping urgently. Joanna looked up and read the bad news. Ice's kidneys were straining against the stress and shutting down. The table was a pool of blood as the blood that they were pumping into him flowed right back out again.

Joanna ignored the kidney failure and continued to try to stem the blood loss. The upper abdomen shot was oozing more slowly than the other had, but it was still posing a problem. Turning to that wound Joanna discovered that he was missing a large piece of his vena cava vein. There wasn't even enough left to repair, it would have to be replaced. Joanna demanded some artificial venous tissue. Halfway through placing the rubbery tissue replacer Ice finally went into complete respiratory failure.

"Tube him!" Joanna barked.

"I can't, his airway is full of blood."

"Give me that."

Joanna snatched the intubation tubing and skillfully slid it down Ice's throat. She reversed the suction on it in hopes of clearing the blood so that ventilation could be started. Jerking violently Ice's heart shuddered to a stop. Joanna did her best to kick start it again, but with several other organs failing there was simply nothing to be done. Joanna pulled the tube out of Ice's throat and looked to Cobalt. Cobalt stared at Joanna pleadingly, but she just gently shook her head. Looking like he was about to collapse Cobalt just bowed his head.

"I'm so sorry, Cobalt. I..."

"Just go save Salen, Doc." Cobalt whispered. "I know you did your best for James, thank you."

In her desperation to save Ice Joanna had nearly forgotten that Salen's life was in danger as well. Turning around she found that Toby was streaked in green blood. Joanna ripped off the gloves she was wearing and pulled on a new pair. She rushed up to Salen's side and started to assess the damage. Toby had opened up the wound to knit the arteries and veins back together.

"I don't understand," Toby growled in frustration "I've slowed the bleeding, but he's getting worse. His blood pressure is almost nothing!"

"His blood pressure is just fine, for a Vulcan. You've done an excellent job so far, except that you've reconnected the trinary subclavian to the supra venous junction."

"I'm putting him back together wrong?" Toby asked in horror.

"Just a few mistakes, nothing I can't fix."

"Salen's lucky to have you." Toby said seriously. "Not every doctor knows about Vulcans..."

"Go patch up Cobalt. I can finish from here."

Fighting to keep her tears back Joanna began working on the gory hole in Salen's chest. It looked like whoever had shot him had tried to go right through his heart. If Salen had been human they would have succeeded. As it was Salen's heart was safely tucked away from the devastating wound.

It took four hours of painstaking micro surgery to truly repair the tissues damaged by the phaser blast. During that time Toby fixed up Cobalt's shoulder and placed Ice in one of the morgue lockers to await funeral. Unable to stay in the same room as his dead partner Cobalt had asked to be released. Joanna had allowed him to go. She sealed Salen's skin and with Toby's help she cleaned his skin and moved him to a biobed to recover.

An hour later Joanna found herself alone with Salen in the recovery area. Physically Salen was stabilized, however his mental functions were all over the charts as he remained locked in his forced meditation. Joanna leaned in and kissed his forehead. Exhausted she brought a chair up to his bed side to keep vigil. She watched his chest rise and fall. Reaching under the covers she took his hand in hopes that it would wake him.

"Is he going to be okay?"

Joanna jerked as she was startled by Toby's voice. She drew her hand out of Salen's quickly. Acting as though he hadn't noticed the intimate touch Toby walked around to the far side of the biobed. He looked at Salen for a moment before turning his keen eye on Joanna.

"Is Salen going to be okay?" Toby repeated.

"He should be, it may be a few days before he wakes though."

"We need him awake before then, he needs to lead this ship."

"What?"

"Razor is gone, it looks like he was taken. Cobalt is still pretty shaken up so he doesn't have much in the way of details."

Joanna felt her heart sink at the news that Razor was missing. She felt terrible that she hadn't even thought of him through all of this. Salen was going to be frantic when he learned that his partner had been kidnapped. Once again fighting tears Joanna closed her eyes.

"I don't think I could have done what you did." Toby said softly.

"You did a fine job with Salen." Joanna countered. "You saved his life."

"That's not what I'm talking about." Toby said with a sad smile. "I'm talking about making the decision to help Ice first."

"It was the only logical choice."

"Spoken like a true Vulcan...I guess being married to one will do that to you."

"Wha...what?"

"It's Joanna, right? Joanna McCoy, or rather Pike now."

"I...I don't know what you're talking about."

"It's okay, your secret is safe with me." Toby reassured. "I'm specially trained to know when someone is lying, which is actually why I came down to talk to you in the first place. I knew there was something wrong with you and I was determined to find out what it was."

"How did you figure it out?"

"The illusion you're wearing can't hide the love in your eyes when you look at him."


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter Twenty-four

"It's been over a year and you're still a pain in my ass, Donavan."

"I've never started a single fight, Sir."

"No, but you certainly incite them!" The Warden snarled. "Not to mention finish them. Alvarez is going to be in the infirmary for a week, he's my chief catalytic engine mechanic."

Sam knew there was no point in arguing his point or even telling the Warden that he had strike Alvarez so hard to keep the man from killing one of his teammates. Towering over the middle aged Warden Sam stood perfectly still with his hands held voluntarily behind his back. The Warden fearlessly walked up to his prisoner even though Sam could easily kill him before either of the guards in the room could do anything. A year of hard labor had broadened the muscles across Sam chest and turned the rest of his body to steel as well.

"I want rid of you in the worst way, fights on my planet have nearly doubled since your arrival. But I have never had a prisoner transferred because I couldn't handle him and I will be damned if your punk ass is going to be the first." The Warden looked Razor over in disgust. "I put you and your crew on the most dangerous job on this godforsaken rock and somehow you've managed to not only survive, but keep your team safe as well."

"Sorry." Sam apologized.

"Don't become a wiseass on top of everything else." The Warden snapped. He looked over at the two guards, one of which was Sam's friend Reilly. "You two, out."

"Sir?"

"Go find something else to do."

"It's against protocol to leave a prison worker alone with a prisoner." Reilly pointed out. "If you want I ca..."

"Get lost or I'll have you both fired!"

The second guard did not hesitate to leave, most of the guards were former prisoners and as such they didn't have much chance of getting another job if they lost this one. Reilly however still hesitated to leave the Warden alone with Sam, or rather the other way around. Sam flashed him an understanding smile and Reilly sighed before turning and leaving.

"You've got that one in your pocket." Warden said of Reilly. "Don't think I haven't noticed."

"Guard Reilly is good to all the inmates."

"Yeah, but he treats your ass as special."

"Sir, it is the middle of my shift. I need to get back to work, if we could just get this over wit..."

"Take off your left shoe." The Warden said suddenly.

"Sir?"

"Now."

Confused Sam sat down and pulled off his shoe as ordered. When he went to get back up the Warden motioned for him to stay down. Feeling increasingly apprehensive Sam stared up at the Warden.

"Good to see a little fear back in your eyes, Donavan. I know that you've earned the title 'Razor', I've also figured out that the device of your new namesake doesn't seem to bother you anymore."

"It still hurts as much as the first day."

"But clearly it isn't working as a deterrent." The Warden walked over to the far corner of the nearly barren room and picked up a metal pipe that was leaning against the wall. "It is of course very illegal to beat a prisoner, but I have a feeling you won't tell anyone."

"If you kill me you're going to end up as one of the inmates."

"I'm not going to kill you." The Warden shrugged. "Bring your right knee up, cross your left ankle over it and hold it there."

"Wha...what?"

"Just do it. Trust me, you don't want me to call a guard in here and force him to hold you down."

Sam ground his teeth together in frustration. He considered not following order, but he was starting to get an idea of what the Warden was going to do, and it was something he didn't want an audience for. Bowing his head submissively Sam crossed his ankle over his raised knee and held it in place.

The Warden didn't hesitate and swung the heavy metal weapon at the exposed sole of Sam's foot. Sam had brace himself for the strike, but it did nothing to prepare him for the hot pain that lanced up his leg. Crying out Sam instinctively scrambled back away from the Warden. It didn't matter, the one strike had done all the damage that the Warden had intended.

Welding his eyes shut to keep tears from escaping Sam hugged the knee of his injured leg against his chest. Still sitting on the floor he fought to catch his breath as the sharp pain morphed into a powerful ache. Sam had felt several of the delicate bones in his foot snap when the Warden had struck. When the Warden stepped up to him Sam coward from him in hopes that he wasn't going to ask him to expose his foot to him for more abuse.

The Warden casually picked up Sam's discarded boot and tossed him at it. Still panting heavily Sam made no move to put it back on. The Warden smiled brightly and silently encouraged Sam to pull it on. Fearing another strike Sam complied. He had to bite his tongue to keep from crying out as he forced the tight shoe onto his quickly swelling foot.

"Get up."

Sam looked up at the Warden pleadingly, but found no mercy. Grinding his teeth together Sam forced himself to his feet. He nearly passed out even though he all of his weight shifted onto his uninjured side. Sam tried to stand still, but he couldn't keep from trembling. He wanted more than anything to throw up, but he wasn't about to give the Warden the satisfaction.

"Every time you take a step I want you think really hard about getting into another fight."

"Yes, Sir."

"Now get back to work."

Sam's blood turned to ice at the thought of spending the next eight hours working on his feet. The Warden had a smug grin slung across his face. Sam's temper flared and he briefly thought of throwing himself at the Warden. The Warden noticed the change in his captive and took a step back as he rested his hand on his phaser. Sam sighed in defeat and took a deep breath to prepare himself for the first step.

Despite anticipating the pain the reality of it was far worse than Sam had thought. Placing weight on the broken bones caused them to flare angrily. Forced into limping Sam hobbled towards the door. Halfway there he stopped and doubled over as he began dry heaving. Taking a shuddering breath he lifted his wounded foot up off the floor to take off some of the pressure.

"Good luck out there, Donavan." The Warden chuckled.

The full extent of what the Warden had done suddenly dawned on Sam. If his enemies saw this weakness they would take advantage of it and kill him. The Warden would be clean, there would be no way of proving that he had caused the initial injury. Sam's fear quickly turned to anger. Pulling his shoulders back Sam glared defiantly at the Warden before shifting all of his weight onto his injured side. Pure determination allowed him to correct his gait and walk away from the Warden as though nothing was wrong.

"It's a shame you're such a fuck up, Donavan. Starfleet would kill to have someone with half your grit."

Razor jerked awake and was greeted with a pounding headache. Discovering that he was no longer restrained to the chair he started to get to his feet. Pulling at his wrists he found that they were tightly bound behind his back. He got as far as his knees before whatever drug Gina had pushed into his blood made him dizzy. Razor took a few breaths to try and orient himself.

"Are you alright?" Gina asked.

"What the fuck do you care?"

Ignoring Gina Razor looked around the featureless room. He couldn't hear any kind of machinery that would lead him to believe that he was still on a ship. The gravity had also changed, it was slightly less than what was standard on ships. Razor wasn't sure how long the trip had been to get where they were, he'd spent most of the journey drugged. He shook his head to help clear it. Gina was keeping a safe distance, but was clearly not going anywhere.

"Why are you sticking so close to me?" Razor asked.

"I'm not."

"Bullshit, you left your home planet to..."

"Belaton was not my home planet." Gina interrupted.

"Whatever, you had a business there, and yet you left to escort me here. Why?"

Gina didn't answer she just went over to the intercom and announced to someone that Razor was awake. Razor studied her for a moment. She looked uncomfortable and nervous. She was chewing on her bottom lip in a way that Razor would have found attractive if he didn't know her better.

"There's a reward, isn't there?" Razor asked. "That's why you haven't let me out of your sight, you don't want someone else swooping in and taking credit for my capture. How much will you get for having slaughtered Salen? I assume both orders came with promise of cash. I hope you're the kind of girl that can enjoy blood money, I'd hate for Salen and I to have died in vain."

"North doesn't want you dead." Gina said softly.

"Oh he will after he meets me."

Gina's eyes brightened with tears and she looked as though she was going to say something when four men entered the room. She instantly changed her mannerism, standing up straighter she glared at them like a woman who commanded respect. To their credit the men did seem to respect her and waited for her orders.

"Bring him to North."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Razor looked up at the men, at first they looked like typical hired guns. One reached down and took him by the elbow to help him to his feet. Razor offered no resistance and stood up. He peacefully allowed them to lead him down the twisting hall ways. Gina stayed in front of the group. She had changed into a tight crushed red velvet dress that splayed out at the hips and went all the way to the floor. Razor watched the sway of her body as he walked behind her. Despite her nervous nature when they were alone together, when she had an audience she conducted herself with authoritative confidence.

When they walked past a window Razor glanced out at the hostile world beyond. The purple haze that whipped around in the turbulent atmosphere spoke of a toxic world. Planets that were outside M class range made perfect hide outs since no one could sneak up on them from the surrounding grounds. He looked over his escorts as well and decided that they all held themselves like ex-Starfleet drones. A smile twitched the corner of Razor's mouth, if they were ex-Starfleet he'd know all their moves.

Gina walked up to a large set of double doors and pushed them open. Beyond was a large, tastefully decorated office. A man that Razor assumed was North was sitting at a ornately carved wooden desk, pretending to be reading something. Behind him the wall was all glass, showing the alien landscape behind it. Gina walked inside, but instead of walking up to North she walked up to the side of his desk and waited to be acknowledged.

Flanked by the four men, two on each side, Razor was brought to center of the room and brought to a halt. North continued to study his 'important' document to make his new guest wait. Razor rolled his eyes at this pathetic show of power. Eventually North looked up and smiled brightly.

"Hello, Donavan, I've been expecting yo..."

North stopped mid sentence when Razor suddenly lashed out at the men next to him. With his hands pinned behind his back his options were limited, but not reduced to zero. He had been waiting for North to speak because he knew that the guards would give at least part of their attention to their leader while he spoke out of habit if nothing else. Caught unaware Razor was able to head-butt the man to his right which gave him the space he needed to kick the man to the back left of him. Both of the men instantly hit the ground.

Ignoring the other two guards that had barely had enough time to figure out what happened Razor made a mad dash for North. Shocked by the sudden loss of control North didn't even get a chance to call out for help. Razor jumped up onto the desk and then launched himself off it. He had aimed one knee at North's chest and kept the other one in contact with the edge of the desk so that he could use it as leverage once he landed on North.

North and his chair fell over backwards with the force of the impact. Razor rode North to the marble floor, his knee still drilled into the man's sternum. North was knocked completely breathless as they landed hard. Straddling his victim Razor brought one leg up and pressed his shin against North's throat. Leaning forward Razor put his full weight on North's throat in an attempt to choke him.

Razor was seconds away from killing North when the two uninjured guards finally organized themselves enough to do something. Their first instinct was to fire several phaser rounds into his back, but Razor's uniform easily absorbed the blows. They rushed over and physically hauled Razor off his victim. North scrambled away, holding his throat and coughing violently.

Determined to get back to his prey Razor fought the two men who had interrupted him. He managed to knock one of them unconscious and was working on the second when reinforcements finally arrived. Razor was still not easily subdued, however eventually someone struck him in the knee hard enough to bring him down. On his knees he was just about to surge back to his feet when someone pressed the muzzle of a phaser against his temple. Stopped for the moment Razor became a passive captive once again. Blood poured down the right side of his face from where he'd gashed open his forehead during the fight.

North took a moment to compose himself before stepping up to Razor. Remaining calm North kicked Razor hard in the ribs with the tip of his boot. The strike was forceful and precise, Razor growled in pain and leaned forward to spit the blood that had jumped to the back of his throat onto the white floor. He glared spitefully up at North. In response North smiled brightly, assured that he was back in control.

"Very impressive, Donavan." North purred. "Not many men would dare to even think about attacking me. Do you have any idea who I am?"

"I know you're a murderer." Razor spat.

"I assume you're talking about my orders to have your Vulcan partner killed." North said calmly. "I am sorry about that. However, speaking of murderers: how many people have you killed, Donavan?"

"I don't know." Razor shrugged. "How many of your men did I just kill?"

"None, they'll just be sore for a while. Not to mention fired."

"In that case I'm still at thirty-seven. But, if I'm lucky it will be thirty-eight by the end of the day."

"A man who counts his kills." North nodded in approval. "Only two kinds of men count their kills. Men who are proud of it, and men who regret it. Which one are you?"

"I certainly won't regret killing you."

"I still think you're part of the latter group." North chuckled.

"What do you want from me?"

"Nice and to the point. Okay. In the simplest terms: I want your ship."

"Never."

"Now hear me out before you make snap decisions. I need that ship to reac..."

"Never!"

North sighed in mock disappointment as if he'd truly believed that Razor would have listened to a word he had to say. Looking to his men North gave their leader a slight nod. Razor didn't even bother to try and defend himself as the pack of guards worked to beat him nearly senseless. Eventually ending up on his back Razor struggled for breath as he stared up at the ceiling.

Kneeling down next to his captive North pulled out a knife and slowly drew a line of blood below Razor's jaw. Once again Razor did nothing to stop the abuse. North was obviously annoyed that Razor wasn't fearful of him, but he took it in stride. Grabbing a fist full of Razor's blood soaked hair to keep him still North brought the knife point up and rested it just under Razor's right eye. Razor fought to remain calm as North threatened to blind him.

"If there is one thing you need to know about me, it's that I *always* get what I want." North said with a sad smile. "I am trying to help you, trust me, save yourself a lot of pain and just give me what I want."

North waited for a moment for Razor to say something. When Razor remained silent North chuckled. He began to slowly increase the pressure on the knife until the tip sunk into his cheek. As the pain grew Razor ground his teeth together and weld his eyes shut. Closing his eyes did nothing to stop the knife from lancing deeper into his flesh. Razor finally cried out when the pressure behind his right eye exploded into a flash of agony.

North pulled the knife out, revealing that he'd only made an incision about an inch deep. Razor heard Gina's high heels clicking quickly across the marble as she fled the scene. When Razor opened his eyes neither of them appeared damaged, but half of his vision was gone. He fought a wave of nausea as he realized what North had done.

"I trust that you now realized that I am not bluffing." North hissed. "I will take you apart piece by piece. Now then, about your ship, Captain Donavan..."

"Semper fi." Razor whispered quietly.

"Semper fi? What does that mean?"

"It means that you don't know who you're dealing with." Razor growled. "It means I will never do anything for you, I will never give you anything, it means that I can not be broken."

"Brave words, Samuel, but every man has a breaking point. Sooner or later you'll start to wonder if a hunk of metal really worth suffering over."

"It's not...but the men aboard her are." 


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter Twenty-five

"Salen, please, you need to lay down."

"I am fine."

"Salen..."

Ignoring Joanna Salen swung his legs over the edge of the biobed and jumped down. Toby was standing by and was just in time to keep Salen from collapsing to his knees. Salen had binder gauze wrapped around his chest which was already starting to seep with green blood. Salen pulled away from Toby and managed to stand on his own two feet, however it was difficult to hide the radiating pain in his chest.

Taking a deep breath only made matters worse, but Salen ignored the consequences. He took a step and his knee instantly buckled. Toby lashed out and grabbed Salen above the elbow to keep him standing. Salen was forced to press his hand against his chest as he fought to catch his breath.

"You've lost too much blood to be on your feet." Joanna fretted.

"I am used to losing blood, I can handle it." Salen replied as he pulled away from Toby again.

"Salen, she's right." Toby said "You're not rea..."

"She?" Salen repeated.

"Did I say 'she'? Slip of the tou..."

"He knows, Salen" Joanna interrupted.

"She's a good actress," Toby smiled "but it is my job to know when someone is lying."

"I want you off this ship now!" Salen growled.

"Salen," Toby put his hands up in placating matter "I won't tell anyone. I jus..."

"Not you." Salen turned to Joanna. "You. You can not stay."

"I'm not going anywhere."

"With Razor gone, I am now Captain of this ship now and you will do as ordered."

"Salen, calm down." Toby said. "After what happened down on the planet Joanna is safer here with us."

Salen glared spitefully at Toby for a moment before snarling in frustration. He pushed his way past Joanna and headed for the door. Toby and Joanna exchanged worried glances before following him. Salen marched directly to the locker room next to the transporters. He threw open his locker. Rather than taking the time to take his pants off normally he just tore open the seam and let them fall so that he could pull on the phaser uniform.

"Salen, you're not really going to go back down there are you?" Toby asked.

"I have to get Razor back."

"He's not down there. His uniform has a tracker in it and it isn't showing up anywhere. He's been taken off the planet already."

"Someone knows where he is." Salen snarled darkly.

Toby tried to continue to protest, but it was clear that Salen wasn't listening. Joanna didn't have any better luck. Salen winced slightly as the magnetic closer of his uniform pressed down on his chest. The tight suit made it even more difficult to breath. Toby and Joanna tried to keep up as Salen rushed to the transporter room and began typing in the coordinates.

"Salen, let me come with you." Toby insisted. "If you're going to be asking the 'natives' questions, my experience will come in handy."

"I am not going to ask for anything, I am simply going to take it."

"Salen, no!" Joanna cried in alarm. "You can't. You nearly died of Pa'nar Syndrome once, you'll be far more susceptible to it now."

"No one follows me this time, that is an order." Salen said as though he hadn't even heard Joanna. "If I do not return in one hour take the Diamond back to Federation territory and contact Starfleet."

When Salen went to get onto the transporter pad Toby grabbed his wrist to stop him. Salen paused for a moment. He stared Toby down with an intensity that could almost kill on its own. Toby didn't back down.

"Salen, I can't let you do this."

"You can not stop me."

Before Toby could even figure out what happened Salen twisted out of his grip and shoved him back. Even injured Salen displayed his inhuman strength and Toby was sent flying back. Striking the transporter console Toby cried out in pain. Salen didn't wait to see if his friend was okay. He jumped up onto the transporter pad and triggered the beam.

Salen could hear Joanna's desperate cry for him to stop ringing in his ears as he arrived on the planet. It was middle of the night, but the city was brightly lit in red and orange neon lights. Salen turned around and found the Golden Dragon where Razor had last been seen. The front door was still broken in from when the Dogs had descended on bar to rescue what was left of the original rescue team.

The upstairs room spoke of the violence that had occurred. Dried blood both red and green stained the expensive oriental style rug. Salen had been unconscious for nearly a week and the trail in Gina's apartment had gone cold. Salen stepped through the broken antiques, looking for anything that could help.

Salen stopped as he heard someone coming up the stairs. Retreating into the shadows of the cluttered apartment he waited for his guest. Whoever was approaching didn't seem to be concerned about making himself known. The plain looking man stepped into the apartment and instantly started rummaging through the many dressers that decorated the apartment. Salen stepped out of his hiding place and walked up behind the man. Too busy searching the drawers the man didn't notice that he had company.

"Looking for something?"

The man jolted so hard he nearly climbed up onto the dresser. He whipped around and stared at Salen with his eye wide in shock. Salen made no move to attack, he just watched the man. The man tried to regain his composure and smiled nervously.

"Oh...uh...hi there. Didn't see you there. I was just...um...I think I should just go."

"You are not going anywhere."

"Look man, no hard feelings, okay? I'm not the one who wants you dead, I was just following orders."

"Who gave you those orders?"

"I can't tell you that. He'll kill me."

"What do you think I am going to do to you?" Salen threatened.

"Well...I mean...you're a Vulcan, right?"

"So I have been told."

"Aren't Vulcans all into peace, love, logic, and that sort of thing?"

"Not all of us."

Salen took a step closer causing the man to press himself harder against the dresser. Looking around desperately the man realized that Salen had positioned himself between him and the only exit. The man decided that his only choice was to put up a fight and swung a punch at Salen.

Easily stepping out of the way of the clumsy attack Salen lashed out and grabbed the man's throat. Lifting his prey up off the ground a few feet he unceremoniously dropped him back to the floor. Ignoring the blood he felt seeping under his suit Salen reached down and took the man's wrist. Hauling him back to his feet Salen forced him around and threw him into the dresser head first.

Salen took a step back and waited for the man to get back to his feet. Moaning pitifully the man rolled over and sat up. Leaning his back against the dresser he looked up at Salen. His shirt had torn open and Salen noticed the all too familiar tattoo on his chest. When the man didn't say anything Salen went to close in on him again. The guy put his hands up in surrender.

"Wait, please, I'm not a fighter."

"I noticed."

"Don't hurt me, please let me go."

"Tell me who kidnapped my friend and wants me dead."

"We don't want you dead, we are not violent people...it's just...we need you dead."

"Why?"

"I don't know. I wasn't told. I'm not told anything anymore." The man started to ramble. "I thought I knew what I was doing when I joined, but things have changed. Sy is the one who is supposed to be leading us, but more and more it seems that North is where the orders are coming from."

"North? Is that who 'needs' me dead?"

"Yes." The man sighed in defeat.

"Where is he?" Salen demanded.

"I don't know where to find him. I swear."

"You are lying."

"No, I'm not, I swear."

Salen took a menacing step closer, but the man no longer cowered from him.

"Go ahead and kill me," the man spat defiantly "it won't do you any good."

"No, killing you will not help. However I know something that will."

Salen narrowed his eyes as he attacked the man once again. The man cried out for help and struggled to get away as Salen pinned him against the dresser with enough force to crack his ribs. The blaze of pain took most of the fight out of the man. With his captive secure Salen brought one hand up to press it against the man's face. Salen hesitated for a moment to make the connection before finding his resolve.

Salen clawed his way into the man's mind. Through the jumble of thoughts and emotions he could barely even hear his victim screaming for release. Finding what he needed Salen tore away from him. Collapsing to the ground the man held his head and rocked back and forth as he wept. Salen reached up and rubbed away the emerald blood that was tricking from his nose.

"You were correct, you do not know where North is...but you know someone who does."


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter Twenty-six

"It doesn't have to be like this. You can stop this at anytime. I don't want to hurt you any more than you want to be hurt."

Razor rolled his eyes at North's cliche attempt to start playing the 'good cop'. He had tried the technique on a few people in his time. It worked occationally, but usually it just pissed the captive off. Razor knew why now, it was insulting. North was enjoying every second of this and he wasn't even trying to hide it.

When Razor didn't say anything North sighed in mock pity. He tapped on the small controller in his hand. Razor arched back as pain lanced up from the exposed soles of his feet. North had assured him that he was getting off easily since the tiny barbed devices sunk into his flesh were usually placed in a much more sensitive location. Since North couldn't figure out how to open the closure of Razor's phaser uniform he had very little free skin to work with.

The tiny teeth in Razor's feet sunk their electrical fangs deeper. Trembling from the effort to not scream Razor closed his eyes as sweat rolled off his skin. Hours of this was beginning to wear on him, but by not screaming now it would give him something to do when it became more difficult to bear. North watched his captive struggle for a few minutes before turning the device off and placing the controller in his pocket. Free from the muscle tearing pain Razor bowed his head and worked on taking deep slow breaths. North reached down and put his hand under Razor's jaw and tilted his head back to force him to look up at him.

"I've never met a man like you, Samuel. I have to admit I'm impressed. I admire your strength, and I don't mean your musculature. You've got an inner strength I've never seen before."

"Are you trying to work up the courage to ask me out on a date?"

"You're funny too."

"You left out handsome."

North flashed Razor a tight lipped smile before lashing out and striking him hard across the face. Razor calmly turned his head to the side and spat a mouthful of blood onto the floor. What he had really wanted to do was spit the rust flavored blood in North's face, however he knew that North would view the aggressive act as making progress. The best move in this game was to remain impassive.

It worked. Razor could see the growing frustration in North's eyes. Razor didn't smile, he didn't gloat, he just stared forward with the one eye that still had sight. The pupil of his right eye now held a ghostly blue cast to it. Kneeling on a now blood spattered stone floor Razor sat with his hands held behind his back. Ion cuffs around each wrist and both ankles allowed North to hold Razor in any position he wanted, he'd even used them to lifted him off the floor a few times. It was not a technology that Razor had been familiar with before.

"I would be getting further with you faster if that suit of yours didn't protect you so well."

"I doubt it." Razor shrugged. "Your torture technique sucks. You should get an outside contractor, someone with a little more imagination."

"You really have no fear of me."

"None."

"Can you even feel pain?"

"I feel it. I just don't care."

"Every man has his limit." North growled.

"That's not true. I've met three men who could not be broken."

"Friend's of yours?"

"No. Victims."

"Maybe they just were innocents and truly didn't know whatever information you were trying to pry from them."

"No. I've come across those men as well. There's a difference, you can see it in their eyes."

"What happened to the men you couldn't break?"

"They died."

"You're going to join them if you don't give me what I want. Do you think they'll forgive you when you meet them in the Afterlife?"

"I'm not interested in their forgiveness. They were evil scum that deserved what happened to them."

"What about you?" North mocked. "Do you think you deserve this?"

"I do." Razor whispered.

"Really? Why's that?" North chuckled. "Atoning for your past sins?"

"No. Because I got caught."

"Liar." North laughed. "That's the first lie you've told me. You honestly do believe that you deserve every second of pain, but not because you got caught. It's because you got your Vulcan partner killed. If you'd been thinking with your head and not your crotch the Vulcan would still be alive."

Razor ground his teeth together.

"I finally hit a nerve, didn't I?" North said softly. "Maybe now we can get somewhere."

"All you've proved is that I have nothing left to lose."

"Or nothing left to fight for."

"Can we stop all this inane babble and just get back to what we were doing?"

"As you wish."

North brought out the small tablet controller from his pocket and tapped on it. Razor fought against the cuffs that were slowly starting to force his wrists up behind his back. Whatever gave the cuffs their power was stronger than Razor. Bowing his head he tried to concentrate on relaxing as the cuffs raised up high enough to start threatening him with double shoulder dislocation. The joint strain wasn't just painful, it also forced panic into his chest.

Adrenaline poured into Razor's system as his body screamed a warning to his mind that he was close to being physically torn apart. Razor growled in a combination of pain and frustration as his breathing became shallow from the strain. Trying to take a deep breath only put further stress on his contorted shoulders.

"Another inch or so higher and your shoulders are going to give way." North informed coldly. "But I'm sure you don't need me to tell you that."

Razor really didn't need the news flash. North smiled and tapped on the control again. The cuffs rose just enough to bring a renewed wash of nausea inducing pain. Razor growled and panted for breath as his shoulders finally began to separate. It would either take a little more force or a little more time to ruin the joints. Too long in this position and the ligaments themselves would being to loosen until they could no longer hold.

"When we're done with the shoulders we'll work on the hips."

Razor couldn't stop the low moan that escaped his lips. North took the opportunity to suddenly jerk Razor's left arm up past the breaking point. The sickening snap of the joint coming apart was instantly followed by a flash of agony. Finally unable to stay silent Razor screamed. With his arm still in the unnatural position Razor came close to passing out.

North suddenly released him. Whatever power allowed him to position the cuffs turned off. Not expecting the sudden freedom Razor fell forward. After taking a few moment to orient himself Razor rolled over onto his back. Holding his injured arm against his chest he growled and cursed to himself. Taking a deep breath Razor jammed his shoulder back into place.

"I take it that this isn't the first time your shoulder has been taken apart by force. Where did you learn how to put it back into place like that?"

"Prison."

"Of course."

Still close to blacking out Razor closed his eyes and tried to let the darkness to take him. Just as he felt he might find an escape he was hit with a splash of icy water. He opened his eyes to keep North from feeling that he needed more of a bath. While he was trying to regain his composure Razor went into a light convulsion. When it was over he just laid still.

"Let's do the right one now." North purred.

"Okay." Razor nodded slightly.

Somewhat revived Razor forced himself to sit up. He peacefully placed himself back on his knees with his hands behind his back so that they could be lifted up behind him once more. Despite having been put back in its socket his left shoulder still throbbed intensely. He felt the cuffs locking back into place in preparation to tear his other shoulder. North studied Razor for a moment.

"This isn't going to work, is it?" North sighed.

"No."

"It would be suicide to try and somehow ransom you."

"Yes."

"What am I going to do with you?" North muttered to himself.

"There is only one thing you can do."

"Kill you?"

"Yeah." Razor shrugged causing him to winch in pain.

"You seem very calm about that."

"I knew from the start that my death was the only way this would end."

"I'm a little surprised that fancy suit of yours doesn't have some sort of suicide function." North said.

"When the uniform was designed I was asked if I thought that was a feature it should have."

"You said no? Why?"

"Because a Dog never gives in."

"Semper fi, right?"

"That's right."

"I like you." North said seriously. "I wish I didn't have to kill you."

"Then let me go."

"If I don't kill you, you'll kill me. Do you deny that?"

"No."

Razor had been too tired to lie, too exhausted to try a fruitless negotiation for his life. North crossed his arms over his chest and looked down on Razor. They had been playing this game for over nine hours and neither one of them were any closer to getting what they wanted. Right now Razor's greatest hope was that the next dislocation would force him into unconsciousness so that he could get a break. North suddenly crouched down to come to Razor's eye level.

"I know when I'm beaten. But, what about a deal..."

"No deals." Razor said instantly.

"Hear me out. I will give you a quick death if you just give me the name of your ship."

"Not interested."

"Anything that I could interest you in? Other than your life of course."

"Can't really think of anything else that will do me much good if I'm going to die soon."

"How about revenge?" North offered.

"Revenge?"

"I'll give you Gina." North explained. "She's the reason you're here, she's the reason your partner is dead."

"Funny, I didn't know you took orders from her."

"I don't. But she didn't have to follow my orders. I sent your photo to several hundred agents. She was on a planet dozens of light years from here. She could have let you walk into her bar, have a drink, and let you walk right back out again and I would have never known. But she decided to trap you, knowing I'd kill you."

"She's a loyal one."

"Far from it. She did it for the money."

"Which is why she brought me here personally." Razor pieced together.

"That's right. She wanted to make sure that she got the full reward."

"So you'll let me kill her so you don't have to pay up?"

"I doubt you'll kill her, you don't seem the type. However, she is a top notch piece of tail."

"You want me to rape her."

"No, no, this isn't for me. It's for you. I want you to have something in exchange for giving me the name of your ship. I want to give you something before I'm forced to kill you."

"How generous of you." Razor growled.

"It's better than nothing. Besides the name can't hurt can it?"

"No, it can't. Particularly since I'm fairly certain you already know it."

"I've heard stories. But, I'd like confirmation."

"I gotta tell you, North. I'm fairly angry with Gina. I can't promise that I won't take things too far. I can't promise that I won't kill your prize whore."

"I can always get another one." North shrugged. "Do we have a deal?"

"...Black Diamond. Her name is Black Diamond." 


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter twenty-seven

Salen slunk through the shadows of a heavily planted estate garden. The pinkish moonlight cast an unusual glow on the large pond that dominated the center of the garden. It was close to midnight, but the main house was being paced by guards. Salen watched them from a comfortable distance looking for a weak spot in their watch. It was not his intention to kill any of the guards, but he had already decided that he would if he had to.

Suddenly feeling nauseous Salen had to grind his teeth together to keep from being sick and nosily giving away his position. Tasting blood he swallowed hard and fought to regain control of his stomach. After a few deep breaths Salen dashed out of cover and jumped up into the limbs of a large tree. The tall tree allowed him access to the roof of the two story house. He had taken the chance that the guards would not think to look up while doing their sweep.

The risk worked and Salen landed undetected on the roof. Keeping low he made his way to the inner court yard. From his perch on top of spiraling mansion Salen surveyed the garden that was laid out in the court yard. Unlike the outer garden there were no guards here. Salen closed his eyes and took a deep breath, he could smell any humans that might be hiding in the well manicured court yard. With his eyes close his enhanced hearing also became sharper. There was no tell tale buzzing that usually gave away forcefield or other defensive technologies.

"You do not actually fear an intruder." Salen whispered to himself. "The guards out front are just another display of wealth."

Feeling confident Salen jumped down off the roof onto one of the balconies. The large glass double doors were not locked and no alarm was triggered when he opened them. Salen stepped into the house and began searching for his prey. With what seemed like countless room Salen was forced into a systematic search. He found several bedrooms, but so far they were all empty.

Having searched the top floor Salen made his way to the large spiral staircase that would bring him down. When he arrived he could hear the distinct crackle of a fire. The pleasant aroma indicated that it was mostly in a fire place rather than the house itself burning down. Salen cautiously made his way to the ground floor and towards the source of the fire.

The fire was crackling in a fire place that was set in the far wall of a large library room. There were two high back leather chairs in front of the fire with a small ornate table between them. Salen tensed when a hand reached out from one of the chairs to take a drink off the table. Salen scanned the room, looking for the best way to approach.

"Come and join me, Salen. I am unarmed."

Salen narrowed his eyes in irritation. Fearlessly stepping out of the shadows he walked towards the chairs. Salen walked around to face the man sitting calmly in the over sized chair. Dressed as though he had been expecting company the man gestured for Salen to take a seat. Salen crossed his arms over his chest and stared coldly at the man. The man smiled sadly.

"Let me start by saying that I am very pleased to see that you are alive."

"That is odd. I could have sworn that you and North wanted me dead."

"Not me, just North. In fact I deeply regret that I didn't hear there was a bounty out for you and your partner before it was too late."

"Where is North?" Salen growled.

"Yolarian 6. I have a file with all of the access codes you'll need to infiltrate his compound. You'd better hurry if you want a piece of North though, Sy is already on his way there."

"I don't care about Sy. I want my partner back."

"And Sy wants you to have him back. He also very much wants to meet you."

"If he has plans of killing me himself I hope he's ready for a fight."

"Sy is a man of great peace. North is an unfortunate mistake of ours. I tried to warn Sy that the power was going to his head, but Sy was blind to his treason for some reason. You see our gro..."

Salen suddenly launched himself at the man. He grabbed him by the front of his shirt and lifted him up out of the chair. Salen barred his teeth at the man and had to draw upon all of his will power to not simply break his neck.

"I do not give a damn about your group!" Salen spat.

"You will change your mind when you meet Sy." The man said calmly. "Everyone does. But don't take my word for it, go to Yolarian 6 and find out for yourself."

"How do I know that Yolarian 6 is not a trap?"

"Oh it is most certainly a trap, North very much wants you dead. But I assure you that your partner is there."

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't tear your mind open to discover if you are telling me the truth."

"If driving me insane is what it takes to make you trust me then you are welcome to all of my thoughts. I have nothing to hide."

Salen's rage suddenly cooled as he stared at his captive. The older man was completely relaxed despite the dangerous situation he was in. Salen put the man down and took a step back.

"You really are not afraid of me."

"No. And I do not fear death at your hand if that is how you feel you must deal with what has happened. Your life and your trust are more important than mine."

"Why?"

"Because Sy says so."

"You believe everything he tells you?"

"Without question. He saved me, and I will always be in his debut."

"Saved you from what?"

"From the pain that was eating away at my heart...he can do the same for you."

"I have no pain." Salen said firmly. "All I need is my partner back."

"The only one stopping you right now is you."

"Yolarian 6?"

"That's right."

Salen glanced at the digital tablet that was laying on the small table which he assumed was the files he needed. Still fighting nausea Salen hesitated in indecision. Coming to a decision Salen knelt down in front of the man and reached out to touch his face. True to his word the man did not pull away from the impending mind meld.

"I am sorry, my partner's life is too important to me. I can not fail to save him, and therefore I can not take your mere word as truth."

"I understand."


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter Twenty-eight

Gina sat up on the edge of the bed and reached for her clothing. She froze when North wrapped his arm around her waist possessively. Gina closed her eyes for a moment before letting her shirt fall to the floor. She looked over her shoulder and forced a coy smile.

"I'm sorry, North...I thought you were finished."

"Oh I am. I just think it is a shame to cover up that gorgeous skin of yours."

"Part of our deal was that I'd save myself only for you. If I walk the halls naked I might be forced to break my promise."

"True. Get dressed." North said dismissivly.

"When can I get a ride home?"

"Tomorrow."

"Thank you."

Gina gathered up her clothing and slipped into them. North usually rolled over and fell asleep. However this time he got up and got dressed as well. Gina eyed him warily when he held out his hand for her to take. Sighing quietly she accepted the offer.

North lead Gina through the complex along the outer glass wall that looked out over the toxic lifeless planet. She noticed the way that he reached out and gently ran his fingertips against the barrier. She wondered if he enjoyed the idea that the glass was all that separated him from the deadly atmosphere beyond.

Gina didn't question where North was taking her until they came to a door that had two guards. She looked to North, but he had a calm expression on his narrow features. He turned to her and slipped his hand under her jaw. After tilting her head back he kissed her gently. Gina returned the kiss out of pure habit.

"As skilled as you are in bed, there has never been any passion in your kiss." North sighed.

"Nor..."

"Don't worry, it does not bother me. I do not love you any more than you love me."

"What is this about? You never talk about love."

"I'm just feeling a little regret that I have to give you up. You will not easily be replaced."

"Repla..."

Gina didn't get a chance to finish. One of the guards opened the door and North shoved her roughly through. Not expecting the violence Gina fell to the floor. Still stunned she pushed herself up on her palms and shook her head to clear it. She gasped sharply as a pair of bloodied bare feet suddenly stepped into her view.

Gina looked up at Razor as he towered over her. With her blood running cold with fear she tried to scramble back away from him. Razor lashed out and grabbed a fist full of her long hair right behind her ear. Gina cried out as Razor hauled her to her feet. She put her hands against his chest, but she wasn't strong enough to push away.

Razor yank her head to the side and sniffed at her neck like a wild animal. His breath was rancid and hot as the desert wind against her skin. Growling darkly Razor threw her back to the floor and stared spitefully at North.

"Something wrong?" North chuckled.

"She reeks of you." Razor hissed.

"Well I'm certainly not going to touch her after you." North chuckled. "Space only knows where you've been."

"She won't be any good to you when I'm done anyway."

"Just remember that I kept my end of the bargain. If you think of anything else you want, I can get it for you."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"North..." Gina whimpered.

North smiled coldly and the heavy metal door slid shut. With her heart pounding in her chest Gina looked back up at Razor. He barred his teeth at her and surged forward. Gina screamed as he grabbed her and brought her back to her feet. She cried out in terror again as he drove them both into the closed door. He could have easily killed her with his momentum, however when they struck the door he turned just enough so that most of the impact was taken by his own shoulder.

"He really is an animal." North chuckled through the door.

"North! Please, help me!" Gina begged.

Razor jerked her away from the door and shoved her towards the back of the small cell. He came up behind her and grabbed the back of her shirt with both hands. Gina cried out as he tore the fabric open. She held what was left of her shirt to her chest with one hand as Razor forced her to turn around. When he pulled his fist back she ducked just in time to cause him to slam his fist into the wall.

Despite the blood that dripped from the cuts he'd just pounded into his hand he showed no signs of pain. Welding her eyes shut Gina broke down into tears. Showing no mercy Razor took her by the upper arm and lifted her up once more. With his free hand he ripped the sheets back from the bed and forced her down on her back.

"Sam, wait! Please...I...I'm sorry!"

"Sorry? You murdered my partner!"

Gina couldn't think of a defense as Razor joined her on the bed and pinned her down. He reached back and grabbed one of the discarded top sheets and pulled it up over his shoulders. Gina was briefly confused by this act of modesty until she caught sight of the tiny camera lens in the top corner of the room.

Straddling her Razor reached down between them and stole her ruined shirt. He made a big show of tossing it to the side before leaning in and kissing the side of her neck. Gina gasped in shock, Razor's lips were burning hot where they touched her exposed skin. Sweat dripped off his jaw and splashed against her as he brought his lips against her ear.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Razor whispered in her ear "but I need you to scream."

"Wha...what?"

"Scream."

When she still didn't respond Razor shifted a little more of his weight onto her. Still truly afraid Gina threw her head back and screamed at the top of her lungs. Razor winced at the sound, and rewarded her by lifting his weight off her. Holding himself up on his forearms to keep his significant weight from crushing her he continued to passionately kiss her neck and bite her shoulder. She cried out when he bit her even though he was not bitting down hard enough to cause pain.

"Do you know what your life is worth?" Razor demanded loudly.

"Sam..."

"Two words. Your life is worth two words. Meaningless ones at that."

Gina cried out once again as Razor ground his hips into hers. Once again he could have truly hurt her with his full weight, but he held back. Gina put her hand on his chest and pushed herself down further into the bed to hide from the camera that was watching them. A smile touched the corner of his lips. He pressed down on her again and she played along with a sobbing cry of pain.

"Sam, I really am sorry." Gina whispered as she continued to pretend to fight back. "If I could take it back..."

"Don't worry about that now." Razor said gently. "Let me out of this cage and I will tear through them like a wolf through sheep."

"You can't stop North. He'll kill you..."

"I'm already dead."

Gina hesitated for a moment. She knew he was right, either way North was going to kill him. She looked up into Razor's eyes and found herself staring into the white cloud from where North had blinded him. A sudden rage released inside her towards North that she had never felt before.

"How can I help?"

"Just play dead."

When Razor reared up Gina was too afraid to make a sound. Sitting on her hips he reached down and put one hand on her jaw and the other on her shoulder. Razor made it look like he was putting all his strength into breaking her neck. Gina let out a strangled cry that was cut short and then relaxed completely. Razor scrambled off her and roared in a combination of rage and anguish. Gina tried to remain as still as she could, not even daring to breath. Razor went to the door and pounded on it.

"North! Come and collect your dead whore!"

"Step away from the door." One of the guards ordered.

Razor paced over to the far corner away from the bed and the door. North was not outside the door. Instead the two guards stepped inside. One kept his phaser trained between Razor's eyes while the other went to move Gina. Razor watched for his moment, knowing that it would come when the other guard pulled the sheet away from Gina's bare chest.

As expected when Gina's beautiful form was revealed the second guard couldn't keep from glancing at her. The second's worth of distraction was all Razor needed. He launched himself from the corner and showed the guard that he really did know how to break a neck. The other guard had just enough time to exclaim in surprise before bringing him down.

"Stay down." Razor ordered.

Razor had acted like he was talking to the dead guard, but Gina knew that he had been talking to her. She only waited a minute before she got up. She stole one of the dead guard's shirts and pulled it on before chasing after Razor. Just as she stepped out into the hallway the base alarms went off. She could hear shouts of alarm and phaser fire in the distance. She ran in the direction of the noise and quickly came across a bloody swath.

Razor had not been exaggerating when he had told her that he was going to rip through the base. Gina caught up to where the fire fight was and hid just behind the door way. Not being actual trained soldiers the men were panicking as they faced their first true threat. Razor was pinned down behind cover, but he didn't act like he was gravely out numbered. The lights started flickering as Razor blew holes in the walls and wiring system with the phaser rifle that he had stolen. Razor quickly crippled the communication system on the base and true chaos ensued.

"I only want North!" Razor barked. "Bring him to me and you might just live."

Gina was surprised how quickly the gathered force of the base turned on one another. Those who were more fearful of North attacked those who saw Razor as the greater threat to their lives. From his defendable position Razor fired a few warning shots over the crowd to motivate them to go get North.

"Sam!" Gina called out.

"Gina, get out of here!"

Since most of the men were busy fighting one another Gina braved a dash from her hiding place to join Razor.

"Gina..."

"I know where North will be." Gina interrupted.

"Take me there."

"Uh...well...we need to get past them."

Razor thought about his options for a moment before stepping out of cover. He put his thumb and index finger in his mouth and whistled ear splitingly. Everyone froze for a moment. Razor aimed the phaser rifle at the skylight above him.

"Everyone out before I decide to open a window."

The men stared at Razor in disbelief for a moment before they began to scatter. The undisciplined guards disbanded and scrambled to keep themselves alive. Razor shook his head sadly. If one of his Dogs had run like these men he would be forced to put them down himself. Gina stepped up to his side.

"Would you really have shot out the skylight?"

"If that's what it took. Now take me to North."

"You're insane, you know that. Right?"

"Every Dog has his day, I guess this one is mine."

Gina looked Razor over for a moment and realized that it was only sheer will that was keeping him standing. His chest was heaving with every labored breath as sweat rolled off his skin. His black suit covered his throat, but even through the phaser proof fabric she could see his pulse throbbing in a racing pace.

"Sam, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. North, I want North."

"He will have retreated to the panic room."

"Any chance you know the code to get in?"

"No."

"Salen was my lock pick. I'll have to do it the hard way."

Gina guided the way and Razor followed after her. Racing down the glass walled hallway Razor sudden crashed to the floor. By the time Gina could turn around he was already back up to his knees. She went to help him, but he jerked away from her and forced himself up to his feet. He didn't bother picking the phaser rifle back up and took a few disoriented steps forward. She saw that he was leaving bloody footprints with every step.

"Sam, you are in no condition to fight North."

"I just have to get my hands around his neck."

"Sam, no..."

"Where is he? Take me there!"

Razor's demand was not up for debate. Gina continued to lead him to North. She thought that his most loyal followers would be standing by, but the heavy door to the panic room was unguarded. Razor lumbered up to the door and pounded on it.

"North! North!"

"Sam, he can stay in there for months."

Razor roared in frustration and slammed his already bloodied fist into the heavy door. He tore the control panel away from the wall in a shower of sparks. He stared in at the various wires and circuits, but he was used to using explosives in situations like this. Panting for breath he leaned his forehead against the door and closed his eyes for a moment.

"Sam?"

"Gina, can you get off this planet?"

"I don't know. North doesn't allow ships to orbit here, it draws too much attention."

"The good news there is that means we know he's in there."

"I'm sure he's called a ship to come get him."

"I can not allow that." Razor sighed. He turned around to face Gina. "Is the air supply in there the same as out here?"

"I don't know."

"Let's find out."

"Wait, Sam, what are you planing?"

"I am going to make good on my threat to open a window."

"That will not be necessary."

Razor jolted at the strong male voice. He whipped around, nearly losing his balance, to face the stranger. The door to the panic room had opened and an imposing figure was standing in the door way. Razor used his remaining good eye to look the man over. He looked to be around forty years old, but the way he held himself gave the impression that he had the power of a much younger man. His eyes were black and instantly reminded Razor of Salen's.

"You must be Razor."

"That's me." Razor admitted freely.

"I am called Sy."

Gina gasped and dropped to her knees, but Razor remained unimpressed.

"Where's North?" Razor demanded.

"I took care of him. You understand better than most that when a good dog goes rabid you have to put him down."

When Razor gave him a distrustful look Sy calmly stepped to the side. Razor looked into the panic room. North's body was laying in a crumpled heap on the floor. Needing confirmation Razor pushed past Sy and knelt down next to North and checked his pulse. As he touched his throat it became clear that his neck had been cleanly broken. It wasn't a trick, North was truly dead.

"I guess with North dead the only thing left for me to get done is to kill you." Razor said calmly as he turned on Sy.

"We are not enemies, Samuel."

"I decide who is and isn't my enemy."

When Razor went to step towards Sy Gina cried out in alarm and rushed to put herself between the two men. Razor went to move her aside, but ended up collapsing to the floor. He got to his hands and knees before falling back to the floor.

"Sam!"

"I'm sorry, Salen..." Razor muttered "I tried..."

"Sam? Sam!"

Razor tried to rally one last time, but his eyes rolled back to white as he passed out. Gina panicked and forced him over onto his back. She put her hand on his cheek and gasped sharply. She looked up as Sy came and knelt down beside Razor.

"He's burning up." Gina fretted.

"Let me see."

Sy reached out and brushed his fingertips against Razor's forehead. He wrinkled his brow for a moment before reaching down and taking Razor's wrist. Sy worked Razor's thumb into the collar of his suit and pressed it against the fingerprint lock. Gina jolted in surprise when Razor's suit suddenly split open down the chest. Sy pulled the suit open further revealing the fact that Razor's skin was bright red with open ulcers scattered across it.

"Wha...what happened?"

"This uniform is not designed to be worn for long period of time." Sy informed. "He has a massive systemic infection."

"He must be in so much pain. If...if the suit was killing him, why didn't he just take it off?"

"Because he vowed to protect it with his life." Sy said with admiration.

"How do you know that?"

"Just a guess."

"Can you save him?"

"I hope so, or we are going to have a very vengeful Vulcan on our hands." 


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter Twenty-nine

"Salen? Are you okay?"

"Fine."

Joanna wasn't reassured by Salen's monotone response. She hesitantly reached out to open the bathroom door, but it suddenly slid open and Salen stepped out before she had a chance to invade his privacy. He was still in his phaser uniform despite the fact that he had returned from the planet hours ago. His hair and face were damp from a hasty attempt to clean himself up. Joanna had heard him retching, but the look on his face told her that he didn't want to talk about it.

"You really should be resting. You still have a massive wound in your chest."

"It does not bother me."

"Can I take a look at it?"

"No."

"Salen..."

"I have a job to do, and a partner to rescue." Salen interrupted. "I am confining you to quarters until you are needed in Medical."

"What?" Joanna asked surprised.

"Those are my orders."

"Salen, what happened down on that planet?"

"I did what I had to."

"You can't lock me up in here." Joanna protested. "I need to be down in medical working on a new drug for you."

"No. Stay here. The Vuladin is working just fine."

"It's killing you!"

"We will worry about that once I get Razor back."

"We're wasting time, there is no reason for me to be stuck in here when I could be working."

"You have a computer in here, work the theoretical side."

"Salen..."

"I will not speak to you further on this." Salen turned to leave.

"Where are you going?"

"I have a ship to Captain."

Salen left no room for argument. As the door closed behind him he tapped on the control panel and locked the door from the outside to ensure that Joanna followed his orders. He reached up and rubbed at his chest which was throbbing painfully. Salen shook his head to try and wake himself up, when that didn't work he gave himself a powerful slap across the face.

"That worked better than expected." Salen muttered to himself.

Feeling a little more alert Salen made his way directly to Sick Bay. The ship was already on a course toward the planet where North was holding Razor, but it would take several days to get there even at top speed. When Salen arrived at Sick Bay he ordered the nurse to leave.

Salen reached up and pressed the contact that caused his uniform to split open down the front. He grimaced in pain as he peeled the top half of the suit off. Emerald blood slowly oozed down his already stained chest and stomach. Sighing heavily Salen went over to the sink and grabbed a towel to try and clean off the excess blood.

Rummaging through the drawers Salen found some packages of heavy duty bandages. He slapped one over the reopened wound and ground his teeth together as he pressed it hard against his skin to stop the bleeding. Satisfied that he was no longer actively bleeding to death Salen started to go through the small vials of medications. Snapping a bright red vial into a hypospray needle Salen guessed at a dose and pressed it against his throat.

Salen jolted back as though he'd been shot. Doubling over he weld his eyes shut and growled to keep himself from screaming. With the initial shock over he straightened back out and took a few deep breaths. He was shaking violently at first, but the tremors slowly subsided.

"Cordrazine is a dangerous drug, even for a Vulcan."

Salen physical jumped forward at the sound of Toby's voice. Salen turned around and found the torturer leaning against the doorway into Sick Bay with his arms crossed over his chest. Salen took a few steps back before he bumped into one of the exam tables.

"Toby..."

"Captain, I'm only going to say this once: self medicating is one of the fastest ways to get demoted from the Dogs...which in our line of work means execution. I'm going to turn a blind eye this time, but if we need to get you some help tell me now. I can't let you risk all our liv..."

"I am dying." Salen interrupted quietly.

"What?"

"I am not using the Cordrazine to get high. I am using it to keep me going long enough to save Razor."

"Let me take a look at that wound, I can stop the blee..."

"It is not the bleeding. I have Pa'nar Syndrome again." Salen admitted. "I need the Cordrazine to keep my adrenal system going, it should buy me a week."

"Salen, we need to get you to the Vulcans, a mind meld can cure Pa..."

"They will not help me."

"Spock will."

"No." Salen shook his head. "He saved me once from this, he will not do it again. Even if he would save me to keep my father from heartbreak it is too late. I do not have enough time to save Razor and make it to the Enterprise."

"Salen...I came looking for you because I needed to tell you that we are not on a rescue mission at this point."

"What do you mean?"

"Razor is dead. This mission is about revenge, stopping North, and if we are lucky we can recover Razor's remains for a proper funeral."

"You underestimate Razor's strength." Salen snarled. "You have no way of knowing that North has killed him, clearly North wants something from him."

"It isn't North that will have killed Razor. It's Razor's uniform, I thought you knew, but when you told the crew that were going to go get him I realized that no one had told you."

"Told me what?"

"I'm sure it doesn't effect Vulcans, but with us humans the nature of the phaser suit will cause wide spread skin break down, infection, and ultimately death if it is worn for too many days in a row."

"A design flaw?"

"Yes and no. It was decided not to do anything about it because it lets a Dog know that if he's captured that he only has to suffer through a limited amount of torture, that the suit will give him an out."

"By killing him."

"Exactly. It gives us a window to rescue, but ensures that no one ends up a prisoner for too long. Razor would never take that suit off for anyone, if the infection hasn't claimed him yet it will in the next twenty-four hours."

"I am not turning this ship around." Salen said firmly.

"The Dogs don't have to lose two Captains in a row. Let us take you to Spock."

"No." Salen shook his head. "I deserve to die."

"What happened to Razor isn't you fault."

"I know, but what happened down on the planet is. I murdered an innocent man. He told me where to find Razor, he told me that he was an ally, and I didn't believe him. I killed him while tearing his mind open to find the truth...only to find out that everything he had told me was true."

"We call it 'collateral damage', Salen."

"I do not care what you call it, it does not change what I did."

"Salen..."

"This conversation is over. I am going to kill North, and I am not giving up on Razor until I have proof that he is dead."

"What does Joanna have to say about all of this?"

"She does not know."

"You're making her a widow, don't you think she has a right to know?"

"It would be far more cruel to inform her." 


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter Twenty-nine

Panting in an unnatural sleep Razor struggled to wake. Fever from the infection that was ravaging his system caused sweat to roll off his skin. He managed to flutter his eyes open for a moment, but the flash of pain that consciousness brought with it quickly caused him to pass out once more.

Dreaming of the past Sam looked out across the campus of Starfleet Academy from the top steps of the Hall of Ceremonies. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath of the salty air that blew in from the near by ocean. After years of the musty recycled air of the prison planet it was heavenly to take a breath of fresh Earth air. Beckett stepped up next to him with a garment bag and handed it to him.

Sam unzipped the top portion of the garment bag and smiled as he caught sight of the Starfleet dress uniform inside. Until this moment Sam had still been doubtful that Beckett was actually going to be able to get him into the Academy. Beckett looked Sam over with fatherly pride.

"It's official, Kid, you're in."

"I can't thank you enough."

"Just remember our deal."

"I won't disappoint you, I promise."

"I believe you." Beckett nodded. "You've got a bright future ahead."

Sam felt a flush of pride. His own father had never placed such faith in him, even before he and his brother turned to crime for entertainment. A group of female cadets suddenly walked past, catching Sam's eye. Sam also caught their eye and they all giggled in unison, one of them blew him as kiss as they disappeared into the building. Beckett chuckled causing Sam to blush in embarrassment.

"You are going to be a big hit with the ladies, Donovan." Beckett predicted. "However, there are two rules when it comes to women. The second rule is to never knock one up."

"'Knock up'?"

"Pregnant. You end up with a kid and I'll ship you right back to that hell hole. You're no good to me if you've got the responsibility of a child."

"What's the first rule?"

"Never fall in love."

"Is there something wrong with love?"

"Being in love means giving yourself completely to someone, and you don't have that right."

"I don't understand."

"You may not be rotting in solitary confinement anymore, but don't ever suffer from the delusion of thinking that you are a free man. Your body, your mind, your life, your very soul belong to the Dogs. I'm the jealous type, I don't like to share. So sleep with as many women as you want, but make it clear to all of them that they can't have you. You're already taken. Falling in love is against the rules. Understood?"

"Yes, Sir."

Sam's fever induced flashback jumped forward a few years. Close to being top of his class in the Officer division he was keeping every promise he made to Beckett. In prison he had built a strong muscular frame, but due to the poor nutrition he'd always been gaunt a wiry. A few years of eating well had changed all of that and now he had a thick layer of muscle stretched across his broad shoulders. Laying on his side he slipped in and out of a light sleep.

"Damn it, Donovan, someone needs to put a collar on you."

Sam opened one eye and groaned quietly at the bright morning sunlight that silhouetted his roommate, Loren. His roommate worked most nights at the engineering building and had come home to an all too familiar scene. Sam smiled sheepishly at Loren and then shook the shoulder of the blonde woman sleeping in his arms.

"Sorry, Kristie, I gotta get to class." Sam said.

"I'm Kristie." A voice behind Sam complained.

"Oh, right, of course." Sam smiled as he looked back over his shoulder at the slender Orion that was also sharing his bed. He turned back to the blonde. "I'm sorry...uh..."

"That's okay, Honey," the blonde smiled "I don't know your name either."

"Sam."

"Hannah." She said as she got up and slipped back into her cadet uniform. "Can I come back tonight? Just for a few hours."

"Sure."

"I have to study tonight." Kristie sighed. She traced her finger along one of the scars across Sam's back before crawling over him to get out of bed. "I'll hunt you down next time I'm feeling lonely."

"You know where to find me."

Sam's roommate stared at the two women as they realized that they had changed into each other's uniforms and exchanged them. Kristie gave Sam a kiss on the cheek before leaving with Hannah. Sam sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He pulled his hands though his hair before getting up to fetch a clean uniform.

"Donovan, how the hell do you manage to get so much anonymous sex?"

"I ask for it."

"Ask? Just ask. 'Excuse me, Miss, would you like to have sex with me?'. Just like that?"

"Uh...yeah, basically." Sam shrugged as he pulled a pair of pants on.

"And that works?"

"Most of the time."

"I hate you." Loren chuckled. "Although I guess if I was a woman I'd sleep with you too."

"You'd sleep with me now if I let you." Sam teased.

"Get to class you man-whore. Try not to have sex with anything on your way."

"I'll try to restrain myself."

Sam gave Loren a wink and headed out the door. He was looking forward to today's class. He had been enrolled into Delta Advanced hand to hand combat training by special invitation. At first he had though that it had been Beckett pulling the strings, but Beckett had assured him that it had simply been Starfleet knowing talent when they saw it.

Today was the first meeting of the class. Sam was surprised to see that there were only a small number of cadet's in attendance. There were thirteen men and four women. Looking at the others it didn't take Sam long to realize that he was the only human in attendance. Two Klingons looked Sam over and then exchanged a few not so quiet snide remarks.

"You two have something to share with the rest of the class?" Sam growled.

"Yeah, you're in the wrong place, Human." The Klingon snarled.

"I assure you he is not."

Sam turned towards the sound of the calm voice and was surprised to see Spock approaching the group. He had seen the half-Vulcan from a distance and had heard all the stories, but he'd never actually met him. Spock had graduated a few years back, but had stayed at the Academy as an advisor and teacher when not aboard the Defender with Captain Pike.

"There has never been a human in this class." The Klingon protested.

"Delta Advanced hand to hand is usually restricted to non humans simply because humans do not normally posses the necessary strength and speed to qualify for this course. However, Cadet Donovan exceeds the requirements in both categories."

"I'm not going to take it easy on him just because he is a human." The Klingon spat.

"I do not expect you to." Spock replied. "In fact let us start with lesson one. Tyrus, attack Donovan."

"With pleasure." The Klingon grinned.

Sam raised himself up on the balls of his feet to be in a better position to defend himself as the large Klingon approached him. Tyrus roared in traditional Klingon rage and rushed in to take a swing at Sam. Years of defending himself in prison had more than prepared Sam for the powerful attack. Sam lightly stepped to the side to doge Tyrus's swinging fist. He grabbed the Klingon's wrist and used his attacker's own momentum to flip him over and send him crashing to the floor.

Sam did not continue the fight once his opponent was down. Tyrus was clearly disoriented and sat up slowly. Spock stood over him with his hands held behind his back. Tyrus looked up with humiliation raging in his eyes.

"What did you just learn?" Spock asked.

"I need to protect my balance." Tyrus grumbled.

"No, that is not the point of this demonstration."

"Then what is?"

"Lesson one is never underestimate your opponent." Spock announced to everyone.

The next three hours were some of the most physically intensive since Sam left his life of manual labor behind. When class was dismissed there wasn't a single Cadet that wasn't bloodied in some way. Sam licked the blood from his lips and went to hit the shower room.

"Cadet Donovan," Spock called out "please come here."

"Yes, Sir."

"I am impressed by your combat skills."

"Thank you, Sir."

"I have been looking into your record here at the Academy, it is also impressive. Your background file however does not suggest someone of your particular skill set."

"I'm sorry, I don't know what you mean."

"You have a mix of alien and human fighting styles, and you are very comfortable with them suggesting that you have had a violent past. You move with a muscle memory that can only come from years of practice beyond anything taught here at the Academy. Also the scars across your back are more congruent with a beating with a metal rod rather than a 'farm equipment accident'."

"They don't call it a thrasher for no reason."

"The device is called a thresher, not a thrasher."

"I know." Sam tried his most charming smile. "It was a joke."

Spoke stared at Sam in stony silence.

"Commander Spock," Sam sighed "I don't know what you want me to say."

"I am simply warning you that if it is discovered that you have somehow fabricated a lie to enter the Academy you will be discharged."

"Are you threatening me, Sir?"

"I do not threaten. I only state facts. Who you are and the man in your file do not match."

"Academy life has changed me. Starfleet is my life."

"The ability of humans to change and adapt is a phenomenon that I have witnessed many times. I will accept your answer as logical until further evidence presents itself."

Spock gave Sam a shallow bow and left. Sam found that his stomach was tied up in a knot from the unusual encounter. He feared that Spock could somehow reach inside his mind without even touching him and had seen the truth. The course was only three sessions long and Spock never brought up the subject again, but he managed to put Sam on edge every time he looked in his directions.

"Vulcans creep me out." Sam shivered.

Razor's memories degraded into more chaotic dreaming that eventually turned into nightmares. As he continued to battle with the infection that was boiling his blood he suddenly felt a cold contact against his forehead. The refreshing cold was just enough to bring him to the surface. Feeling as though his skin was on fire Sam moaned in pain as he tried to open his eyes.

"Relax, Sam." Gina said quietly. "I have something for the pain, Sy said that it would be best to wait until you woke to use it since it wears off."

"Get away from me..." Razor protested.

Razor tried to push Gina away, but he was far too weak. Razor's breath hissed across his teeth as Gina gently placed her palm against his chest. She had some sort of gel on her hand that was icy cold and put out the burning that was eating at Razor's skin. Razor closed his eyes and began to breath easier as Gina continued to slather his skin in the vaguely mint smelling gel. When she ran her hand down past his belly button Razor jolted and sat bolt upright.

"Easy, Sam. It's nothing I haven't seen or done befo..."

"How the hell did you get my uniform off?" Razor demanded angrily. "I need it back now, I am to defend it with my life."

"Sy said that you'd say that." Gina smiled. "Your uniform is safe."

"I need it back." Razor repeated.

Still half blind and nearly delirious with fever Razor was having difficulty figuring out his surroundings. Gina was able to push Razor back down onto his back. Laying on a soft bed did nothing to reduce the discomfort of his back where his skin was raw. Razor cried out and tried to get back up, but he was having difficulty just keeping from passing out again.

Gina continued her work of covering his skin in the soothing medicine. Razor fought her for a few minutes before giving in to the treatment. She nudged him to encourage him to roll over on his stomach. Razor complied with her request and she continued to erase the pain that gnawed at his back. When she was done Razor felt as though he was sinking into the bed. Gina lightly ran her fingertips against his skin that was quickly becoming less red.

Razor tried to care about the fact that he was still Sy's prisoner and that he had been stripped of his uniform. However all he could think about at the moment was how soothing Gina's touch was. Breathing deeply Razor closed his eyes as darkness started to take him again. Gina brought her fingers up into his hair as she leaned in and kissed his temple. Razor furrowed his brow, her kiss had felt unlike any other. Part of his weary mind realized that her touch held more than just the purely physical hunger, there was emotion behind it as well.

"Please don't die, Sam." Gina whimpered.

"I'm not allowed to love you..." Razor muttered sleepily.

"Wha...what?"

"It's against the rules..." 


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter Thirty

"Salen? ...Salen, wake up, we're here. Salen?"

"I am awake." Salen muttered sleepily.

"Perhaps you should let Joanna take a quick look at you down in sick bay." Toby said critically. "You look a few heartbeats away from death."

"There is nothing she can do." Salen informed as he got to his feet after having fallen asleep on the floor of the observation room.

"Did you at least say good bye to her?"

"No. I...I have left her a video message for later."

"That's cold, Salen. I though you loved her."

"I do, more than anything. I am sorry that she must suffer because of my poor choices."

"I should use my medical license to declare you 'unfit for duty'."

"That would not be a productive use of your time, or mine."

"I know." Toby sighed sadly.

Salen looked out the floor to ceiling window at the toxic purple planet below. He had never understood why humans would ever bother colonizing poisonous planets when there were plenty of empty M-class planets to chose from. From space Salen could see the violent hurricanes of deadly gasses that swirled across the dead oceans. Feeling exhausted Salen brought out his hypospray of Cordrazine. Taking a heavy dose his heart jumped back up to its normal racing cadence.

"Alright, Salen, let's go get your revenge."

"This is not about revenge, this is about North and sending a message to the underbelly of this galaxy that no one steals a Dog and gets away with it."

"You're right. I'm sorry for questioning your motives."

"Is this sarcasm, as a Vulcan I am not good at detecting or using sarcasm."

"It is not sarcasm, Salen. You make a very valid and logical point. If the Dogs are going to keep their teeth we need to let everyone know we are always ready and willing to bite."

"Exactly. We do not leave a man behind, alive or dead."

"If you survive you will make one hell of a Captain."

"Thank you."

Toby smiled sadly and walked with Salen down to the locker room where the Delta team was already gathered and changing into their uniforms. It had been years since Toby had gone on a field mission so Salen left him in charge of the Diamond while he was on the planet. Salen got changed into his phaser suit. He walked up to Cobalt who looked like he hadn't slept in days.

"Cobalt, if you are not rea..."

"These bastards took Ice from us," Cobalt interrupted "there is no way I'm sitting this one out."

"Very well." Salen turned to address the group of five men. "We all know why we are here. The chances of Razor still being alive are too small to calculate, however they are not zero. So rather than attack the planet's surface from here I have elected to travel to the compound that sensors have detected on the surface. No one is obligated to join me, I am making no orders for this mission. I am prepared to go alone and if I do not return you can reduce this planet to ash from space."

"We're not ready to give up on Razor yet either, Dingo." Tyger smiled.

"Good. Then treat this as a standard Rat Nest, clear out the vermin. North is the only prisoner we are interested in. Understood?"

"Aye, Sir." They chimed in unison.

"Sensors inform us that there is no beaming shield over the compound so we should have no diff..."

Salen was cut off midsentance by the tingling sensation of beam transport. In a bright flash he found himself in a small dark room that reeked of sweat. Salen's eyes quickly adjusted to the dim surroundings. He glanced around at the twelve by twelve room that only held a bed with rumpled and torn sheets. Salen closed his eyes and sniffed at the stale air.

"Razor...you were here." Salen sniffed again and caught another scent. "Perfume, her perfume."

The scent of Gina's perfume was etched in Salen's mind since she had raised a phaser to his chest and fired. Salen reached up behind his ear and pressed on the green jewel hearing aid that had been integrated into a two way radio. It didn't take him long to realize that he couldn't reach the Diamond. He tried to connect with the radio in Razor's suit, but once again he only got silence.

"Silence?" Salen questioned out loud. "North must have beamed me down here, but no one is coming."

Salen's hand slipped down to his hip holster, but he wasn't surprised to find that his phaser hadn't made the trip down with him. Narrowing his eyes in irritation Salen stepped up to the door and discovered that he was not a prisoner. The air in the hallway was thick with the ozone smell of phaser fire.

Following the scent of a fire fight Salen came to the large open room where Razor had faced down North's men. The walls had phaser scorch marks and holes where the charred wiring still sparked. There was blood on the floor, but no bodies. As Salen progressed through the corridors no one stepped forward to challenge him.

"Someone must have beamed me down here, so logically they must be here somewhere. However, why are they letting me wander, they could have had me trapped..."

Not sure where to go Salen started to form a search pattern along the hallways and rooms of the sprawling compound. As he neared the center of the main building his hearing aids picked up a quiet hum. Stopping and holding his breath to hear better Salen decided that the humming was musical in nature, like a mother trying to sooth her baby to sleep.

Moving silently Salen slowly made his way closer to the source. Before he could see his prey he could smell her, the same perfume that hung in the air in her flat above the bar. Salen's step faltered as the Cordrazine began to wear off. He checked for the hypospray, but much like his phaser it was missing. Cursing under his breath he simply pulled his shoulders back and forced himself to move on.

Not attempting to hide Salen stepped into the open door way. Gina had her back to him. She was sitting on the edge of a plush bed with an end table set next to her that held a bowl of water. Salen watched as she dipped a cloth in the cool water and used it against Razor's red and broken skin. Having difficulty thinking clearly Salen furrowed his brow at the scene.

Unaware that she was being watched Gina continued to try and bring down Razor's dangerous fever. Salen remained quiet as Gina reached out brushed the back of her hand affectionately across Razor's cheek. Locked in sleep Razor stirred slightly and turned his face towards her touch. When tears traced down Gina's face Salen stepped closer. He had thought that he would be more emotional confronting this woman, but the heavy dose of Vuladin he was now on to counteract his growing emotional projection had blunted his affect to even the discovery that his partner was still alive.

Feeling close to death himself Salen walked right up to the bed side. Gina turned calmly to look up at him, but she jolted violently with a gasp when she discovered who her guest was. She cowered fearfully from him. Salen ignored her and reached down to touch Razor's forehead. Razor's skin was radiating heat.

"Sa...Salen?" Gina asked.

"Where is North?" Salen asked calmly.

"He...he's dead. Sy killed him. Salen, please, I am so sorry, let me expla..."

"Where is Sy?"

"I think he's in North's office, top floor, but you don't understa..."

"I have discovered that you are no longer a threat, logically I must now go do the same with Sy."

"Sam told me that you were different than other Vulcans, but I don't see it."

"Just do what you can to ensure that Razor survives, the Black Diamond is above and they will find a way to retrieve him."

"What about you?"

Salen didn't answer. Having found Razor alive had taken away one of the stresses that were helping his failing systems to keep running. All Salen really wanted a this point was to curl up somewhere warm and fall asleep forever. However he knew he had to ensure that Sy was not going to keep Razor from returning to his ship. Salen thought he was moving, but he was actually still as a statue staring at Razor while he slept fitfully.

"Salen?" Gina asked nervously as she gently touched his arm.

Startled Salen jerked back and viciously backhanded Gina across the face before falling back to the floor himself. Gina crawled over Razor to the far side of the bed to put some distance between herself and Salen. After several failed attempts to get to his feet Salen reached over and grabbed a handful of the bed sheet to help haul himself to his feet. He bared his teeth aggressively at Gina.

"Bring me Sy!" Salen demanded angrily. "Now!"

"Now, now, Salen." Sy's voice invaded the room. "No need to be rude."

Salen whipped around to face Sy who was standing in the door way. Salen didn't have time to decide if Sy was friend or foe and decided that it would be safer for Razor to treat him as a foe. Salen went to charge him, but fell to his knees instead.

"Cordrazine is not a very effective treatment for Pa'nar Syndrome."

"Wha...what?" Salen asked surprised.

"I know you are sick, Salen. And I know why. I've been informed of Halston's death at your hand."

"I had no choice."

"You had a choice, but that choice was between the life of your best friend and the life of a complete stranger who may have been involved in your friend's captivity. Your choice was a...logical one."

"Halston's mind held nothing but admiration for you...but men have been known to idolize evil in the past."

"I assure you I am not evil, and I wish to prove it to you." Sy smiled. "However, first of all your friend requires the kind of medical attention that only a top notch Starfleet starship can provide."

Salen watched, unable to move, as Sy brought out a small hand held device. Gina made a noise of surprise as she and Razor were suddenly beamed away. Salen managed to force himself to his feet and turned an accusing glare on Sy.

"What have you done with him?"

"I sent them both to the Black Diamond."

"Impossible, the Diamond has access codes, you can not simply beam aboard her."

"Razor gave me the codes."

"Never." Salen spat. "What is going on here?"

"Relax, Salen, I am on your side. I admire you greatly and I wish to help you."

"You cannot help me."

"I can if you let me." Sy insisted.

"Only a Vulcan can save me."

"I am a Vulcan."

Salen gave Sy a skeptical look. He shook his head trying to clear it, wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on him as his body continued to fail. It was taking most of his strength just to remain standing. He looked up at Sy, who looked to be a dark eyed human in his late thirties.

"You are wondering about my ears and brow line." Sy said as he self consciously rubbed at his rounded ear. "Cosmetic surgery to hide my heritage."

"Why?"

"The scars across your skin and your years in captivity should be able to answer that. It is very dangerous to be a Vulcan out in the galaxy alone these days. Becoming 'human' seemed the most logical way to blend in."

"I do not believe you."

"If my brother were here he would still recognize me, although he has never come looking for me since the destruction of our home world, not even after the death of our father."

"Your tone suggests that I know your brother."

"You do. I am Sybok, Spock's older brother."

"Spock?"

"Well, his half brother. In any case I assure you I am a full blooded Vulcan and I can save you."

Salen backed away into the wall when Sybok moved in with his hand outstretched to touch him. Respecting Salen's fear Sybok stopped and put his hand down.

"Please, Salen, you must trust me. Us exiles must stick together."

"I am not an exile." Salen hissed.

"Perhaps not directly, but your father was. I know, my father the hypocrite was the one who exiled him."

"No..."

"I doubt your mother even knew." Sy continued casually. "But why else would he keep his young child from a normal life on Vulcan?"

Panting for breath Salen recalled the only memories he had of his father showing emotion. Those time always corresponded with his mother asking him why they couldn't go home, why they needed to work off world. It was during those times that his father showed flashes of anger and fear. As a child Salen had never understood, but if Sybok was telling the truth it would explain much.

"Wha...why was he exiled?"

"I do not know. I was just a boy at the time. Perhaps for the same reasons that I was." Sybok admitted. "Salen, we are running out of time. Please let me help you."

"No..."

"Share your pain with me...do not be afraid."

"I am not afraid, I cannot let you into my mind."

"I have already been in Razor's, I already know all of the Black Diamond Dog's secrets."

"In that case I cannot let you live..."

Salen lunged at Sybok with what was left of his strength. Salen had never picked a fight with another Vulcan before and quickly found that he was not a match for Sybok's strength. Thrown to the floor Salen landed on his back hard, knocking him breathless. Sybok quickly straddled him and sat down on his chest to pin him down.

"No!" Salen cried. "Stop!"

"I cannot let you die."

The adrenaline rush gave Salen enough strength to thrash, but it was not enough to escape from Sybok. Salen cried out as Sybok pressed his fingertips against Salen's temples. Salen arched his back as Sybok skillfully slipped into his mind. After a brief moment of panic Salen suddenly relaxed. Sybok released him and got back to his feet.

Disoriented Salen was slow to sit up. His pain had been replaced by a serene euphoria that settled around him like a warm blanket. Sybok smiled down at Salen, completely unafraid of him. Restored back to full health Salen now had the power to slaughter Sybok, however he couldn't even remember why he would want to.

"How do you feel, Salen?"

"I...I feel..." Salen searched for the right words. "I feel...free."

"You are free. Salen, you have grown into a fine man, but you could be so much more."

"What do you mean?"

"This 'disease' you have of projecting your emotions onto humans is no curse, it is a blessing. You have a power that you haven't even tried to understand. You could make whole worlds love you just because you want them to. You have the ability to bring a new dawn of peace to this galaxy, you could unite us all and end all wars."

"I do not understand. How?"

"I will teach you..."


	31. Chapter 31

Chapter Thirty-one

"Dishonorable discharge?"

"Only on paper, Donovan. The important people know what's going on."

"I know, but still..."

"The truth, Kid," Beckett sighed "is that Captain Pike wants you on his brand new Starship when she takes flight next year. He's seen your record at the Academy and he's understandably impressed. He won't rest until he has you on his crew, and I'm sure the Enterprise is going to be a very nice ship, but I already have plans for you."

"I understand." Sam nodded. "I still have one more month until graduation..."

"Not any more. I've already informed the Academy that you cheated on several of this year's major exams."

"What?"

"The trial starts in ten minutes. If we're lucky we can have you kicked out of the Academy by lunch and have you on the Diamond for dinner."

"I...I'm not ready for a trial."

"Think of it more as a hearing." Beckett assured. "All you have to do is admit to all charges being raised against you."

"Is this 'hearing' public?"

"More than public, it's mandatory for your whole graduating class. Starfleet does not take cheating lightly."

Sam stared at Beckett in horror.

"Let's go."

"I...I can't." Sam stuttered. "I have friends..."

"Would you rather have me tell them you're a murderer?"

"No, Sir." Sam replied meekly.

"I'm sorry, Donovan, but this has to happen." Beckett smiled sadly. "Don't worry the humiliation will be temporary, but afterward you'll have a home aboard the Black Diamond forever."

"Aye, Sir."

Razor jerked awake from his nightmares of the past in a cold sweat. It was dark and he was disoriented. Panting for breath he noticed that the air had a different feel to it. The air in the compound on the planet had a chemical smell from the toxin scrubbing it went through. The air now was cold and sterile, and yet it gave him a warm feeling.

"Home." Razor muttered.

"Razor?"

Razor turned his head to the side and found Salen standing next to the biobed that he was laying on. Salen had changed back into his casual uniform. He took a hesitant step closer, and then backed up again and held his hands behind his back.

"You crazy, Vulcan." Razor chuckled. "How the hell did you find me?"

"It was not easy."

Razor chuckled again and tried to sit up. Still weak from his brush with death he struggled with getting his body to do what he was asking of it. Before Salen could make the decision to help his friend Razor managed to sit up and swing his legs over the side of the bed. He knew already that if he tried to stand he was going to hit the floor so he just stayed sitting on the bed.

"Where is she?" Razor asked.

"She is in the brig. I did not know what you wished to do with her."

"I know she shot you, but she saved my life."

"She cost Ice his."

"What?"

"Ice was killed by one of the men with her. Cobalt was injured as well, however he has recovered."

"What about you?"

"It is still uncomfortable to breath, but that will pass." Salen said.

"I'm sorry, Salen."

"It was not your fault."

"Of course it was. The mission was over and I stayed behind to get some tail..."

"North was looking for us both, and from what I have learned he had the resources to find us. If it had not been this woman it would have been someone else in his network. We were the target of a manhunt that we did not even know we were participating in. I have yet to discover wh..."

"The Diamond." Razor growled darkly. "North wanted the Black Diamond. Although I don't know why he wanted you dead."

"I believe I know someone who knows the answer to that question."

"Sy...I remember, it's coming back to me now. Who is he? You'd think that Starfleet would know about a man with that kind of reach."

"He is not a 'man', he is a Vulcan."

"Vulcan?"

"He has disguised himself as human." Salen clarified. "He is Spock's exiled half brother."

"Shit." Razor muttered. "Where is he now? You didn't kill him, did you?"

"I did not. He peacefully allowed himself to be held in the brig as well."

"He killed North. I still don't really know why."

"I am not fully aware of all the circumstances either. All I know is that he says he wants to help me."

"Help you?" Razor repeated confused. "Do you need help?"

"Yes." Salen admitted.

"Why?" Razor asked concerned. "What's wrong?"

"My emotional effect on others is getting worse. I am currently taking a powerful drug to keep it under control, however the drug is slowly killing me."

"What do we do?"

"I can think of only two logical courses of action. You can take me to an uninhabited planet where I can not influence others."

"I'm not marooning you on some desolate rock. What is the other option?"

"We trust Sybok and I accept his offer to train me to control it."

"Well he killed North, saved my life, and I'm guessing he looked into my mind so if he wanted this ship he could have taken it by now. So why not trust him?"

"He's an exile."

"So are you, basically. So am I. So are most of the crew."

"I am unsure it is worth the risk..."

"Salen, you are worth the risk." Razor said firmly. "You know sometimes I just want to punch you in the face."

"I did not know that. I though we were friends."

"We are friends you green blooded freak, but I just get so frustrated with your self esteem issues that boarder on suicidal tendencies."

"I am not suicidal."

"No, but you don't always fight to protect your own life."

"One of the side effects of the Vuladin is extreme logical thinking. Logically my life is not valuable when compared to the well being of the galaxy."

"The galaxy needs you Salen."

"Vulcans are in sort supply."

"That's not what I...never mind, you are impossible. If Sy can train you then we'll take him up on the offer. If we find out later that he has ulterior motives we'll deal with them then. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"Good."

Salen was about to say something more when the doors to Sick Bay slid open and Joanna stormed through them. Her beautiful blue eyes were reddened with tears. She stalked up to Salen. Razor expected her to throw her arms around him in relief, however she lashed out at him and slapped him across the face hard enough to leave a bright green palm mark across his cheek.

Razor reached up and rubbed his own cheek, swearing he had felt the blow as well. Salen accepted the sudden violence without protest. Joanna turned on Razor and smiled apologetically. Tears streaked down her face as she struggled to pull herself together.

"I'm happy you're safe, Razor." Joanna said cordially.

"Thanks."

Before anything more could be said Joanna turned on her heels and marched back out of Sick Bay. Salen stared at the door as it closed behind her and sighed. Razor waited for him to say something, but he remained silent.

"Things a little sour between you and the Misses?" Razor asked.

"I locked her in my room for three days, and I failed to mention to her that I did not expect to return from the planet's surface alive."

"I think she figured it out."

"I had left her a message apologizing for not returning."

"Let me guess: you forgot to erase it."

"It would appear that she has indeed watched the message."

"The only logical thing to do at this point is to go apologize." Razor suggested.

"This will take more than a simple apology."

"At least it will be a start."

"The Vuladin has been robbing me of my ability to treat her right." Salen admitted.

"Have you explained that to her?"

"No."

"Go let her know, she'll forgive you."

"It is good to have you back, Razor."

"It's good to be back. Now go kiss and make up with Joanna. We'll figure out excatly how to handle Sy later."

Salen hesitated for a moment before nodding and leaving. Razor spent a moment just sitting in the quiet medical bay. He was trying to push Gina out of his mind, but it wasn't working. Razor slowly lowered himself off the bed and onto his feet. He was hit with a wave of nausea at first. After a few deep breaths he felt steady on his feet once more.

Razor made his way down to the brig. He stepped in front of the cell where Gina was being held. The forcefield that held her captive was like a one way mirror so she didn't know he was watching. She was sitting in the back corner with her knees hugged to her chest. She wasn't crying, she was just staring blankly at the floor. Razor's heart felt heavy watching her broken and alone. He went to turn the screen so that she could see him, but he stopped himself.

Razor turned sharply and walked over to Sybok's cell. The Vulcan with the human features was sitting on the bed. He had his hands on his lap, and with his eyes closed he looked like he was meditating. Razor tapped on the control panel that made it so that Sybok could see and hear through the forcefield. He looked calmly up at Razor and smiled brightly. He got up and walked up to the barrier.

"Samuel, it is good to see you up and about. I trust you are feeling well."

"What did you do to me?" Razor snarled.

"I do not know what you mean."

"You mucked around in my head and you made me love her."

"Ah, yes, I did see that in there."

"You put it there!"

"I don't have that kind of power. I assure you that if you love her that is your fault and not mine."

"I don't know what you are up to, but just know that she means nothing to me." Razor hissed. "I will tell you what does mean something to: this ship, this crew, and my First Officer."

"I only want to help Salen."

"If I even begin to suspect otherwise I will personally see to pushing your species closer to the brink of extinction."

"I believe you, but believe me when I say that I would give my own life to spare Salen's."

"Why?"

"Because Salen is the key to salvation."

"For the Vulcans?"

"For us all." 


End file.
